Secrets of a Misunderstanding
by B4C
Summary: AU future fic. Blair and Chuck are going through a messy devoice when Blair discovers she is expecting their baby. A year later Chuck sees Blair again and discovers he's a daddy. There's no way he will walk away from his child. He can try and be civil with Blair even after she kept this secret from him. Or maybe he will indulge in his own secret.
1. Prologue

Secrets of a misunderstanding

Prologue -

Blair Bass - soon to be Blair Waldorf again - sat at the foot of her childhood bed, staring at the digital reading on the plastic stick in her hand. She blinked, feeling her heart pound, her stomach roll and her vision go fuzzy around the edges.

As bad luck went, this ranked right up there with being hit by a bus right after wining the lotto.

A hash laugh escaped her lungs, taking with it a puff of air she'd been holding onto for the past several minutes.

She was newly divorced from a husband she'd thought was the Prince Charming of her fairy tale story, staying in her mothers penthouse because she didn't know quite what to do with her life now that the rug had been yanked out from under her. And if that wasn't enough to make her wonder where things had gone so wrong, now she was pregnant.

Pregnant. With her ex-husband's child, when she hadn't managed to conceive in the three years they'd been married, even though they'd tried...or at least hadn't worked to prevent it.

What the hell was she going to do?

Pushing to her feet on less then steady legs, she crossed to the dark wooden desk against the far wall and dropped onto the cushioned chair. Her hands shook as she laid the test on the flat surface and and dragged her cell phone closer.

Taking deep, shuddering breathes, she fought the urge to cry, scream, throw a tantrum as her younger self would have. She told herself she could do this. Told herself to be a grown up, it was the right thing to do, and however he reacted, she would handle it.

This was not a bid to get back together. Blair wasn't sure she would ever want to, even with his baby on the way. But he deserved to know he was going to be a father, regardless of the current state of their relationship.

With cold fingers, she dialled the familiar number for Bass Industries, knowing his assistant would answer. She'd never cared for Frank Green; he was a weaselly little brownnoser, hired by Chucks uncle Jack, he treated her more as an annoyance than as the wife of the CEO of a multimillion-dollar company and his boss.

After only one ring, Frank's squeaky, singsong voice came over the line. "Bass industries, Charles Bass' office. How may I help you?"

"It's Blair'" she said bluntly - he knew full well who she was. He was probably privy to more details about her marriage and subsequent devoice than he deserved to be. "I need to speak with Chuck."

"I'm sorry, Miss Waldorf, Mr. Bass isn't available."

His use of her maiden name - not to mention calling her Miss - struck Blair's heart like the tip of a knife. No doubt he'd done it deliberately.

"It's important," she said, not bothering to correct or argue with him. She'd done that enough in the past, she didn't have to care anymore.  
"I'm sorry," he told her again, "but Mr. Bass has instructed me to tell you that there's nothing you could possible have to say to him that he wants to hear. Good day."

And with that the line went dead, leaving Blair steaming. If hearing herself called Miss Waldorf rather then Mrs Bass felt like a knife tip being inserted into her heart, then hearing that Chuck wouldn't even speak with her thrust the blade the rest of the way in and twisted it sharply.

She'd known Chuck was angry with her, knew they'd parted on less then friendly terms. But never in a million years would she have expected him to cut her off so callously.

He'd loved her once, hand't he? She'd certainly loved him. And yet they'd come to this - virtual strangers who couldn't even speak a civil word to one another.

But that answered the question of what she was going to be; a single mother, and without Chuck's support she would need to find a way to take care of herself and her baby - and she'd better do it fast.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter one - one year later...

Chuck Bass flexed his yards against the warm leather of the car seat. His sleek black limo hugging the the road as it took the narrow curves leading into Bridgehampton.

The small Southampton town was not a far drive from his suite in New York City, but it might as well have been a world away. Where Manhattan was nighty percent concrete and city lights, Bridgehampton was all seaside charm and quaint downtown shopping designed to cater to the upper east side housewives while on summer vacation.

The limo slowed as the centre of town came into view. Chuck took this as a chance to examine storefronts. A gift shop, small chic cafes, a bar and grill and numerous pretensions looking boutiques. He studied the awnings, the fancy lettering, a sign of the sophisticated clientele. But there was more to running a successful business then a cute name and an attractive store front, and if he was going to put money into one of these boutiques, he wanted to know it was a sound investment.

At the corner, the car took a left and continued down a side street toward the offices of Blake investments. He'd recently began the process of buying out Brian Blake to expand Bass Industries into the highly profitable Hampton Realestate business. Blake had informed him that he had a few deals still in the works and Chuck had insisted he be involved in finalising the deals.

A few blocks down the street, he noticed a lone women walking quickly on three-inch heels. Given the uneven, pebbly pavement she was amazingly graceful. She also seemed distracted, rooting around inside an oversized handbag.

A niggle of something uncomfortable bit at his insides. She reminded him somehow of his ex-wife. A little curvier and her hair was cropped short and accessorised with a thin headband, instead of flowing in lose ringlets down her back, but still very similar. Especially the way she walked and dressed. The woman was wearing a white blouse and black skirt with a short slit in the back, framing a pair of lovely, stocking clad legs. No jacket and no clunky fake accessories, which followed Blair's personal style to a T.

Shifting his gaze back to the road, he stamped down whatever emotion had his chest tightening. Guilt? Regret? Sentimentality? He wasn't sure and didn't care to examine the unexpected feelings too closely.

They'd been devoiced for over a year. Better to put it all behind him and move on, as he was sure Blair had done.

He spotted Blake's office as the limo pulled into the diminutive three-car lot at the back of the building and he stepped out into the warm spring day. With any luck, this meeting would only take a couple of hours, then he could get back on the road and headed home. Small town life might be fine for some people, but Chuck would be only too happy to get back to the hustle and bustle of the city and the life he'd made for himself there.

Blair stopped outside Brian Blake's office, taking a moment to straighten her blouse and skirt, run a hand through her hair and touch up her lip stick. She noted that her top was still a little to tight over her breasts.

Thankfully, she didn't think this meeting would take long. She had worked hard to run her company even after her mother had pulled her finical backing, and the opening of her Hampton's boutique 'Prep' had proven very profitable. She was not about to let just anyone have a say in her business.

Deciding that her protruding bosom could only work to her advantage, she took a deep breath and pushed through the door. Blake Investments lone receptionist greeted her with a wide smile, informed her that Brian and the new owner were waiting in his office, and told her to go right in.

She took another steadying breath and before steeping inside sent a quick prayer heavenward that the new owner would think an investment in her enterprise worthy of his financial backing.

The first thing she saw was Brian sitting behind his desk, smiling as he chatted with the visitor facing away from her. The man had dark hair that just dusted the collar of his jacket and was tapping a tan, long-fingered hand on the arm of his chair, as though he was impatient to get down to business.

As soon as Brian spotted her, his smile widened and he rose to his feet. "Blair," he greeted her, "you're right on time. Allow me to introduce you to my new business partner, I was just telling him what a fantastic investment your wonderful stores are. Charles Bass, this is Blair Waldorf. Blair is - "

"We've met."

Chuck's voice hit her like a sledgehammer to the solar plexus, but it was only one of a series of rapid fire shocks to her system. Brian had spoken her ex-husband's name and her stomach had plummeted all the way to her feet. At the same time, Chuck had risen from his seat and turned to face her, and her heart started to pound against her rib cage like a runaway fright train.

She saw him standing in front of her, black hair glinting midnight blue in the dappled sunlight streaming through the windows, his eyes gleaming. Yet his suit-and-tie image wavered and no amount of blinking brought him into focus.

"Hello, Blair," he murmured softly. He looked so comfortable and amused, while she felt as though an army of ants was crawling beneath her skin.

How in God's name could this have happened? How could she not know that he was buying into smaller businesses. How could that half wit financial adviser Brian not realise that Chuck was her ex-husband?

She wanted to kick herself for not asking questions. No, actually she wanted to kick Brian. But then, she hadn't really cared who was backing her business as long as they had money and no real interest in how things where run. Going against her mothers wishes had left her alone and desperate for an influx of cash to keep her stores afloat. But she would never be desperate enough to take charity from the man who had broken her heart and turned his back on her when he needed her most.

Not bothering to address Chuck, she turned her gaze to Brian. "I'm sorry, but this isn't going to work out," she told him, then promptly turned on her heel and marched back out the office building.

She was down the steps and halfway up the block before she heard the first call.

"Blair! Blair, wait!"

The three inch pumps hindering her speed as they caught in the uneven sidewalk as she nearly ran in the direction on her newest store. All she wanted was to get away from Chuck, away from those glittering eyes and arrogant tilt of his chin.

She didn't care that he was yelling for her, or that she could hear his footsteps keeping pace several yards behind her.

"Blair!"

Turning the corner only a short distance from 'Prep', her steps faltered. Her heart lurched and her blood chilled.

Oh, no. She'd been so angry, so eager to get away from her ex-husband and escape back to the safety of the store that she had forgotten that's where Charlotte was. And if there was anything she needed to protect more then her own sanity, it was her daughter.

Suddenly, she couldn't take another step, coming to a jerky stop only feet away from the door. Chuck rounded the corner a moment later, coming to an equally abrupt stop when he spotted her simply standing there like a panicked and dishevelled department store mannequin.

He was slightly our of breath, and she found that more then a little satisfying. It was a nice change from his normal state of being calm, cool and always in control. And nothing less then he deserved, given what he was putting her through now.

"Finally." He muttered, sounding completely put out. "Why did you run?" He wanted to know. "We may be devoiced, but that doesn't mean we can't sit and have a civil conversation."

"I have nothing to say to you," she bit out. And there is nothing i have to say that you want to hear. The cruel deceleration relaid through his assistant played out in her mind, bringing with it a fresh stab of pain and reminding her of just how important it was to keep him away from her child.

"What about this business of yours?" He asked, running a hand through his hair, before smoothing his tie and buttoning his suit jacket, once again the epitome of entrepreneurial precision. "It sounds like you could use the capital and I'm always on the look out for a good investment."

"I don't want your money," she told him.

He inclined his head, acknowledging the sincerity of her words. "But do you need it?"

He asked the question in a low tone, with no hint of condescension and not as though he meant to dangle his wealth over her head. Instead, he sounded willing to help her.

He took a step closer, "I heard you had a falling our with your mother, I know you haven't spoken to any of your friends, even my dear sister."

Fighting the urge to ask how he knew she instead thanked her lucky stars that Gossip Girl no longer existed or he would know a lot more. "My line is doing quite well, thank you" she replied, her voice clipped. "And even if it weren't, I wouldn't need anything from you."

Chuck opened his mouth, about to reply and possible try to change her mind, when Brian Blake rushed around the corner. He skidded to a jerky halt when he saw them, looking frazzled and alarmed. For a second, he stood there, breathing heavily, his gaze darting back and forth between the two of them. Then he shook his head and his puzzlement seemed to clear.

"Mr. Bass...Blair..." He took another moment to suck in much needed oxygen, his Adam's apple ridding up and down above the tight collar of his pale blue dress shirt. "This isn't at all how I'd planned for this meeting to go," he told them apologetically. "If you'll just come back to the office...Let's sit down and see if we can't work something out."

A touch of guilt tugged at Blair's chest. Brian was a good guy. He didn't deserve to suffer or be put in the middle of an awkward situation just because she despised Chuck and refused to have anything more to do with him - let alone go into business with him.

"I'm sorry Brian," she apologised. "I appreciated everything you've done for me, but this partnership just isn't going to work."

For a minute, Brian looked as though he meant to argue. Noting the firm expression on her face, however, he released a sigh of resignation and nodded. "I understand."

"Actually," Chuck said, "I'm still interested in hearing about the design line and the stores."

Brian's eyes widened with a spark of relief, but Blair immediately tensed.

"No, Chuck," she told him, her firm tone brooking no arguments. Not that that had ever stopped him before.

"It sounds like it might be a sound investment, B," he retorted, arching a single dark brow and using her old pet name. No doubt to put her off balance. "I drove out form the city and I would prefer not to turn around empty handed." He paused for a beat, letting that sink in. Then he added, "At least let me see the store."

No. Oh, no. She definitely couldn't let him into the store. That would be even more dangerous then simply having him in town.

She opened her mouth to say so, linking her arms across her chest to let him know she had no intention of changing her mind, when Brian stopped her. Touching her shoulder, he tipped his head, signalling her to follow him a few steps away.

"Miss Waldorf. Blair," he said, dropping formalities. "Think about this. Please. I know Mr Bass is your ex - although I didn't know that when i set up the meeting - but if he's willing to invest in 'Prep', as your financial advisor, I have to recommend that you seriously consider his offer. You're doing all right at the moment. The line is holding it's own. But you'll never be able to move forward with your plans to expand without added capital from an outside source, and if worst comes to worst, one bad season could cause you to lose the business entirely."

Even though Blair didn't want to listen, didn't want to believe Brian was right, she knew deep down that he was. Growing up on the upper east side had given her enough business sense to know that.

Casting a glance over her shoulder to be sure Chuck couldn't overhear their conversation, she turned back and whispered, "There's more at stake here then my business, Brian." So much more. "I'll let him look around. Let the two of you talk. But no matter what kind of offer he might make, i can't promise I'll be willing to accept. I'm sorry."

He looked none too pleased with her assertion, but he nodded, accepting that she would only be pushed so far where Chuck Bass was concerned.

Returning to Chuck, Brian informed him of her decision and they started forward again, towards the entrance to the boutique. At the door she stopped abruptly, turning to face the two men. "Wait here," she told them. "I have to warn the girls, it would be unfair to spring this on them." she spun and pushed her way through the door.

Keeping a smile on her face and cheerily greeting customers who were browsing clothing racks, she hurried to the back.

As usual, Jenny Humphrey was bent over a design table. She had changed a lot since high school, she was strikingly beautiful with long, natural, blond hair and big blue eyes. But, it was more then her looks she now carried herself with a new air of confidence.

Jenny had been working for Eleanor when she and Blair had established 'Prep'. And after Eleanor had pulled her backing Blair had taken Jenny on as a head designer, but also as her friend.

Blair was a fairly accomplished designer herself, but readily admitted that it took some doing to keep up with Jenny. Add to the fact that Jenny kept her secret and helped take care of Charlotte, and Blair literally didn't know what she would do without her.

The squeak of the swinging door alerted Jenny to her arrival. "You're back," she said without bothering to look up from the garment she was pinning.

"Yes, but we have a problem," Blair told her.

At that, Jenny raised her head. "You didn't get the money?" she asked, disappointment lacing her tone.

Blair shook her head. "Worse. The investor Brian had me meeting with was Chuck."

A container of sequins feel from Jenny's hands, hitting the ground and spilling everywhere.

"You're kidding," Jenny breathed in a shocked voice.

Blair shook her head and crossed to where Jenny stood rooted like a statue. "Unfortunately, I'm not. He's outside right now, waiting for a tour, so I need you to take Charlotte upstairs to the office and stay there until I give you the all clear."

Rushing across the room, Blair paused to stare down at her adorable baby girl, who was lying on her back in a bassinet, doing her best to get her pudgy little toes into her perfect pink mouth. As soon as she saw her, her smile widened and she began to gurgle happily, sending a stab of love deep through Blair's soul, it stole her breath away.

Lifting her up and onto her shoulder, she wished she had the time to tickle and tease and coo with her. She loved running her line and was very proud of what she had managed to accomplish, but Charlotte was her pride and joy. Her favourite moments of the day were those she got to spend alone with her, feeding her, bathing her, making her laugh.

Pressing a kiss to the side of her head, she whispered, "Later, sweetheart, I promise." Just as soon as she could get rid of Chuck and Brian.

Turning to Jenny, who had come up behind them, she handed the baby off.

"Hurry," she said "And keep her as quiet as you can. If she cries, turn on the tv or radio or something. I'll get rid of them as quickly as I can."

Blair pushed the now empty bassinet across the room and into the storage room. Grabbing a bolt of material, she used it to cover the large piece of telling furniture.

Leaving the storage area, her gaze drifted left to right and up and down, searching for any remaining signs of Charlotte's presence. A few stray items could be explained away. A half full bottle of ear drops in Charlotte Bass' name. That might be a little harder to justify.  
She quickly placed the telling items in a drawer, but otherwise left the room as it had been when she walked in. Then she pushed back through the swinging door and ran smack into a waiting Chuck.

AN: I know some things are a little confusing right now but it will make sense soon. I am trying to give the story a natural flow and not overload readers with a heap of back story in an authors note. I also don't know much about investment or business in general so lets just pretend what i'm writing makes sense.

Im also aware that there are a lot of Jenny haters out there, but please give her a go and remember that this story is AU (after graduation) and I'm going to pretend that the ugly extensions and ridiculous eyeliner never happened.

Thank you for reading.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two - Misdirection

Chuck's arms came up to seize Blair as she flew through the door from the back and hit him square in the chest. The impact wasn't hard enough to hurt, although in did catch him slightly off guard. Then, once he had his hands on her, her body pressed full-length along his own, he didn't want to let go.

It had been a long time since he'd held this women. Too long, if the blood pounding in his veins and the heat suffusing his groin were any indication.

She was softer then he remembered, more well-rounded in all the right places. But she still smelled of Chanel perfume and even though she had cut her hair to shoulder length, she still had the same wavy chocolate locks that he knew from experience would be soft as silk against his fingertips.

He nearly reached up to find out for sure, his gaze locked on her emerald eyes, when she pulled away. He let her go, but immediately missed the warmth.

"I told you to wait outside," she pointed out, licking her glossed lips and running a hand down the front of her snug white blouse. The material pulled taut across her chest, framing her full breast nicely.

He probably shouldn't be noticing that sort of thing about his ex. But he was divorced, not dead.

In response to her chastisement, he shrugged a shoulder. Her annoyance amused him.

"You were taking too long. And besides, this is a public establishment. The sign in the window says Open. If it upsets you that much, consider me a customer."

Blair blew out a breath, fluttering the thin fringe of her bangs and seeming to come to terms with the fact that she wasn't getting rid of him anytime soon.

"Where's Brain?" she asked, glancing past his shoulder and searching the front of the store for her financial advisor.

"I sent him back to his office," Chuck answered. "Since he's already familiar with your business, I didn't think it was necessary for him to be here. I told him i would stop in or call after we've finished."

Tiny lines appeared above Blair's nose as she frowned, not quite meeting his gaze.

"What's the matter?" he teased. "Afraid to be alone with me, B?"

Her frown morphed into a full-fledged scowl, drawing her brows even more tightly together.

"Of course not," she snapped, crossing her arms over chest, which only managed to lift her generous breasts and press them more snugly against the fabric of her blouse. "But don't get your hopes up, because we aren't going to be alone. Ever."

As hard as he tried, Chuck couldn't stop an amused grin from lifting his lips. He'd forgotten just what a fiery temper his ex had, but dammed if he hadn't missed it.

If he had anything to say about it, at some point in the very near future they would be alone together, but he didn't bother saying as much since he didn't want to send her into a full blown implosion in front of her customers.

"So where do we start?" she asked, apparently resigned to his presence and his insistence on getting a look at her store as a possible investment.

"Wherever you like," he acquiesced with a small nod.

It didn't take long for her to show him around the boutique, given it's size. But she explained the reason for the layout and how much foot traffic they could get during the summer season.

Despite her discomfort at being around him again, he'd never seen her so passionate about something for herself. From the first moment at Victrola, he'd known he loved her and while they were married she'd been passionate with him. The sparks they'd created together had made Fourth of July fireworks look like the flare of a wooden matchstick in comparison.

But as Chuck had spent more time at the office trying to prove himself, he and Blair had drifted further and further apart. While Chuck had been working late and jetting off to business meetings, Blair had spent her time working on various charitable committees and helping his step sister Serena, plan for her wedding and subsequent baby.

Blair had become a women who's main purpose was to look good on his arm, add reverence and prestige to his family name, and help raise money for worthy causes.

He wondered now, though if that's what she'd wanted. Or if she'd maybe wanted more then to be simply Mrs Chuck Bass.

Because while he knew she was proud of the fundraising work she'd done while they were married, she'd never talked about it with this level of enthusiasm in her voice or this much animation to her beautiful features.

Blair had been raised in the lap of luxury and was used to servants bustling around her, ready to do her bidding. After their marriage Chuck had provided her with the best of everything. But apparently that hadn't been enough.

The divorce had been so cut and dry, finished almost before he knew what was happening. One minute he'd been married to a beautiful woman he'd adored, thinking everything was fine. The next, she'd announced that she couldn't live that way anymore, and wanted a divorce. Looking back, he admitted that he probable should have fought harder for their marriage to work. At the very least , he should have asked why she was leaving him, what it was she needed that he wasn't giving her.

At the time however, he'd been busy with the company and let his pride take the position that he didn't want to be married to any woman who didn't want to be married to him. A part of him, he understood now, had also thought Blair was just being dramatic. That she was threatening him with divorce because he hadn't been as attentive to her as she might have wanted, or that once she saw that he wasn't going to put up a fight, she would change her mind.

But that hadn't happened. She hand't changed her mind and by the time he'd realised she wasn't going to it had been too late.

Chuck shook his head clear as he followed Blair through the swinging door into the back room. She explained the setup and how they occasionally did custom designs and fittings. He was surprised to learn that his youngest step sister was working as Blair's head designer, but chose not to sat anything .

Judging by the quality of the designs and the financials that Brian had already shown him, this investment seemed like a damn good prospect. Not that he would tell Blair as much. Until he decided for sure whether or not he was going to invest. it was better to keep his thoughts to himself.

She made her way through the room, trusting Chuck to follow. They passed a narrow stairwell tucked away from the front of the shop so that it was nearly invisible to anyone who didn't know it was there.

"Where does that lead?" he asked, inclining his head.

If he wasn't mistaking he thought the colour drained from Blair's face.

"Nowhere,"she said quickly. Then apparently realizing that he would know something was at the top of the stairs, she added, "It's just a small apartment. We use it as an office and somethings Jenny will stay here if she is working late."

Chuck raised a brow at her haphazard story, but decided to let it go. Instead, he allowed her to lead him back through the front of the store and outside.

"What do you think?" she asked.

He turned to find the afternoon sun glinting off her hair, making it shine. A flash of desire hit him square in the chest, nearly knocking him back a pace. His throat clogged and he felt himself growing hard despite the knowledge that he had no right to be attracted to her any longer.

But then who was he kidding? They might not be married anymore, but he had a feeling it would take a lot more than a signed divorce decree to keep his body from responding to his ex-wife's presence. Something along the lines of slipping into a coma or having a full frontal lobotomy.

Tamping down on the urge to step forward and run his fingers through her mass of chocolate curls - or do something equally stupid, like kiss her until her knees went wear - he said, "I think you've done very well for yourself."

She looked only moderately surprised by the compliment.

"Thank you."

"I'm going to need time to look over the books and discuss things with Brian, but if you're not still completely against working with me, there's a good chance I'd be interested in investing."  
If he'd expected squeals of joy or for her to throw herself into his arms in a display of unabashed appreciation, he was doomed to disappointment. She nodded sagely,, but otherwise didn't respond.

And he didn't have a reason to stick around any longer.

"Well," he murmured, putting his hands into his pockets and rocking back slightly on his heels, "I guess that about does it. Thank you for the tour."

Damn, he felt like a teenager out on his first date, and the polite smile she offered only made matters worse.

"I'll be in touch," he told her after a moment of awkward silence.

Tucking a strand of hair behind one ear, Blair tipped her head, but said, "I'd prefer you have Brian call me. If you don't mind"

He did mind and a muscle in his jaw ticked as he ground his teeth together to keep from saying so. As much as it annoyed him, though, he understood her reluctance to be in contact with him again. He suspected that even if he offered to sink a boatload of mooney into Blair's enterprise, she might refuse just on principle. A ridiculous principle that would only cause her to end up shooting herself in the foot, but principle all the same.

...

Blair remained on the sidewalk outside the boutique, watching as Chuck walked away, back toward Brain's office. Not until he was well out of sight, and felt sure he wasn't going to turn around and come back, did she let herself release a pent-up breath.

Then, as soon as the pressure in her cheats eased and her heart was beating normally again, she spun around and returned to the boutique, headed straight for the stairs that led to the second floor apartment. Halfway up, she heard the radio playing, and beneath that, the sound of Charlotte fussing.

Taking the last several steps two at a time, she hurried in and found Jenny pacing back and forth across the floor, bouncing and hushing and doing everything she could think of to calm the redd-faced child in her arms.

"Poor baby," Blair said, reaching for Charlotte.

"Oh, thank goodness." Jenny sighed in relief, more then happy to hand over her squalling charge. "i was just about to give her a bottle."

"That's all right, I've got her now," Blair told her, continuing to bounce Charlotte up and down as she moved to the sofa, unbuttoning her blouse as she went. "Thank you so much."

"How did things go? Is Chuck gone now?" Jenny asked

"Yes, he's gone."

When the words came out more mumbled then intended, she realized it was because she wasn't entirely please with that fact. She might have thought Chuck was out of her life for good, and may have been desperate to keep him away , but she realized now that seeing him again hadn't been entirely unpleasant.

One glance from those dark eyes and her body went soft and pliant. Her blood turned the consistency of warm honey, her brain functioning about as well as malfunctioning computer.

Spending a short amount of time with him while she'd shown him around had been ...not horrible. If it hadn't been for the secret she was hiding just one floor above, she may even have invited him to stay longer.

Which was a really bad idea, so it was better that he'd taken off when he had.

She had Charlotte pressed to her chest, content now that her belly was being filled, when she heard footsteps coming up the stairs. Considering that everyone who knew about the apartment - namely her and Jenny - was already up there, she suspected she was about to get a very rude surprise.

There was no time to jump up and hide the baby, no time to yell for Jenny to run interference. One minute she was glancing around for a blanket to cover her exposed chest, and the next she was frozen in place, staring with alarm at her stunned but furious ex-husband.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Chuck honestly didn't know whether to be stunned or furious. Perhaps a mix of both. He wondered if the whooshing sound in his ears and the tiny pinpricks of white marring hiS vision would ever go away.

It wasn't hard to figure out what was going.

Blair had a baby. She wasn't sitting for a friend; hadn't adopted an infant after their separation just for the thrill of it or to exert her independence. Even if she hadn't been breast-feeding the baby in her arms when he'd walked in the room, the protective flare in her eyes and the alarm written all over her face told him everything he needed to know about her connection to the child.

And that baby was his. He knew it as well as he knew his own name. Felt it, deep down in his bones. Blair would never have been so determined to keep him from finding out she was a mother if it weren't the case - if she didn't believe she had something to hid.

The only way Blair could have an infant that young was if she had become pregnant before their devoice or if she had been cheating on him with another man. And despite the differences that had pushed them apart, infidelity had never been one of them - not by him and not by her.

"Want to tell me what's going on here?" he asked, slipping his hands into his pockets.

It was safer that way. Burying his hands - now curled into tight, angry fists - in his pockets kept him from reaching to strangle someone.

And thou his words might have been delivered in the form of a calm, unruffled question, the sharp chill of his tone let her know it was a demand. He wasn't going anywhere until he had answers. All of them.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a blur of blond hair as Jenny bustled forward and tossed a pink blanket over Blair's half exposed chest and the baby's head. Chuck didn't know which was more disappointing - losing sight of Blair's creamy flash ... or of the child he hadn't known existed until thirty seconds ago.

"I'll be downstairs," Jenny murmured, turning a critical glare at her brother as she passed. "Yell if you need me."

What Jenny had to be annoyed about, Chuck couldn't fathom. He was the victim here. The one who had never been told he was a father, who'd had his child kept from him for so long. He didn't even know how old his baby was, exactly, but given the amount of time they'd been apart and nine months of pregnancy, his best guess was about four to six months.

Blair and his own step sister were the bad guys in this situation. Lying to him. Who else know. Was the rest of his family involved in hiding pertinent facts from him, for the past year.

After glancing over his shoulder to be sure they were finally alone, he took another menacing step forward.  
"We'll?" he prompted.

At first she didn't respond, buying some time by rearranging the baby blanket so that it was covering her exposed flesh, but not the baby's face. Then with a sigh, she raised her head and met his gaze.

"What do you want me to say?" she asked softly.

her seeming indifference had his molars grinding together and his fingers curling even tighter, until he thought his knuckles would pop through the skin.

"An explanation might be nice." Followed by a few hours of abject grovelling, he thought with no small amount of sarcasm, while outwardly he struggled not to let his true level of annoyance show.

"I didn't realize it at the time, but I was pregnant before the divorce became final. We weren't exactly on speaking terms then, so I couldn't find a way to tell you, and to be honest, I didn't think you'd care."

Fury bubbled inside his chest. "Not care about my own child?" he growled. "Not care that I was going to be a father?"

What kind of man did she think he was? And if she could believe he was the sort if man who wouldn't care about his own flesh and blood, why had she bothered to marry him in the first place?

"How do you know it's your baby?" she asked in a low voice.

Chuck laughed. A sharp, humourless bark of a sound at the sheer ridiculousness of that question.

"Nice try, Blair, but I know you too well for that. You wouldn't have broken broken your vows to have some sleazy, sordid affair. And if you'd met someone you were interested in while we were still married..."

He trailed off, a sudden thought occurring to him that hadn't before. "Is that why you asked for a divorce? Because you met someone else?"

It would be just like her. She would never have cheated on him, never been physically unfaithful. But emotional infidelity was another matter, and toward the end, he had to admit that they hadn't been as close or connected as at the beginning of their relationship.

With his Uncle Jack as second in command, he'd taken over Bass Industries and started spending longer and longer hours in the office or traveling on business. Blair had complained about feeling lonely and feeling shut out of his life.

But even though he'd heard Blair's complaints, he hadn't listened. He'd shrugged off her unhappiness, thinking perhaps she was turning into a bored trophy wife. He'd let himself be consumed by work and told himself it was just a phase - that she'd get over it. He even thought he remembered suggesting she find a hobby to keep her busy inn hopes it would keep her off his back.

No wonder she'd left him, he mentally scoffed now. He'd have left him after being dismissed like that.

By her own husband. The man who had once seen something so special in her abilities to overcome any hurdle in her way. The man who was supposed to love, honour and cherish her more then anyone on the planet. Boy, he'd really messed up on that one, hadn't he?

As always, hindsight was twenty-twenty...and made him want to kick his own ass.

Which meant Blair had met another man, Chuck couldn't really blame her for leaving him in hopes of moving into a situation that made her happier than the one she'd been in with him.

The thought of another man touching her, being with her - especially with his baby growing inside her belly - made his vision go red around the edges and his mind fill with images of tearing the aforementioned male who'd dared to touch his Blair limb form limb. But he couldn't blame her, not when so much of what had gone wrong between them was his own fault.

"Is it?" he asked again, suddenly needing to know. Through he wasn't sure what difference it would make now.

"No,' she answered quickly. "There was no one else. Not for me, anyway."

He raised a brow. "What does that mean? That you think that I was being unfaithful?"

"I don't know, Chuck. Were you? It would certainly explain all those extra hours you were supposedly spending at work."|

"I had just taken over the company, Blair. A lot of things required my attention, practically around thee clock."

"And i wasn't one of them, apparently," she muttered, bitterness clear in her tone.

Chuck rubbed a spot between his eyes where a headache was brewing. He'd heard that level of frustration and discontent in her voice before, so many times. The same as he'd heard her complain that he wasn't spending enough time with her.

But what choice did he have? And why couldn't she had cut him some slack? She knew the board was breathing down his neck. The twenty four hour work days hadn't lasted forever. Nowadays, if he was at the office past five, it was usually because he didn't want to go home. Why bother, when there was nothing much there for him to enjoy other then a scotch and a soft bed?

"This again?" he ground out. "Do we really have to get into this again?"

"No," she replied quickly. 'Thats the nice thing about being divorced - we really don't."

"So that's why you didn't tell me you were pregnant?" he demanded. "Because i wasn't paying enough attention to you before the divorce?"

A furrow appeared in her brow. At her breast, the baby continued to suckle, though he could only hear the sounds, not see the child's mouth actually at work.

"Don't be obtuse," she snapped. "I wouldn't keep something like that from you just because I was pouting or angry with you. If you'll recall, we didn't exactly part on the best terms, and you were the one who refused to speak to me. That sort of thing makes it difficult to have a personal heart-to-heart."

"You should have tried harder."

Dark eyes flashing, she said, "I could say the same about you."

Chuck sighed, rocking back on his heels. It was nice to know that even after a year apart, they could jump right back to where they'd left off.

No growth or progress whatsoever, and to make matters worse, there was a whole new wrench thrown into the works. One with his blood running through it's veins. One that he should have been told about from the very beginning.

But arguing with her about it or getting red in the face with fury over her having his child kept from him for so long wasn't going to get him anywhere. Not with Blair. She would simply argue right back at him and they would end up exactly where they were - in a stalemate.

Striving instead for calm and diplomacy, he said, "I guess that's something we're going to have to agree to disagree about." For now. "But I deserve a few answers, don't you think?"

He could see her mulling that over, trying to decide how much pride or privacy it would cost her to share the details of the last year of her life...and fess up to something he suspected even she knew had been wrong - namely keeping his baby from him.

"Fine," she relented after a moment, though she sounded none too pleased with the prospect.

While he weighed his options and tried to decide where to start, she shifted the baby in her arms and quickly rearranged her clothing beneath a veil of pink blanket to make sure she was completely covered.

The child, Chuck noticed, was sound asleep. Eyes closed, tiny pink mouth slack with sleep. And suddenly he knew exactly what he need to know most of all.

"Is it a boy or girl?" he asked, his throat cogging with emotion, making words come out scratchy and thick.

"A girl. Her name i Charlotte."

His chest grew tight, cutting of the oxygen to is lungs, and he was glad when Blair rose from the sofa, then turned to toss the blanket over the back so she wouldn't see the sudden dampness filling his eyes.

He was a father, he thought, blinking and doing his best to surreptitiously suck in sharp, quick breaths of air in an attempt to regain his equilibrium.  
When he and Blair had first gotten married, they'd discussed having children. He'd expected it to happen before long, been ready for it. When it hadn't happened in the first year, or the second, the idea had drifted further and further to the back of his mind.

And that had been okay. He'd been disappointed, he supposed, but so had she. But they'd still been happy together, still optimistic about the future, and conscious of the fact that they hadn't even begun to explore all their options yet. If getting pregnant the fun, old fashioned way hand't worked out, he was sure they'd have discussed adoption or in vitro or even fostering.

But as it turned out, they hadn't needed any of that, had they? No, she'd been pregnant when they'd signed the divorce papers.

"When did you find out?" he asked, following her movements as she trailed slowly across the room. The baby - Charlotte, his little girl - was propped upright against her shoulder now and she was slowly patting his back, bouncing slightly.

"A month or so after the divorce was final."

"That's why you moved away," he said quietly. "I expected you stay in the city after we split. Then I heard you had a falling out with your mother and you stopped talking to Serena, but I never knew why. I never knew where you'd gone." Not that he hadn't thought about having his PI cheek on her, but he had thought it best to have some time away from her.

She shrugged one slim shoulder. "I had to do something. There was nothing left for me on the upper east side and I knew that it would be hard for Serena to keep this from you, I didn't want to put her in that position. My mother wanted to sue you for child support, i knew I could do it on my own."

"You could have come to me," he told her, just barely able to keep the anger and disappointment from seeping into his voice. "I would have taken care of you and our child."

She stared at him for a moment, but her face was passive, her eyes blank, and he couldn't read her expression.

"I didn't want you to take care of us. Not out of pity or responsibility. We were divorced. We'd already said everything we had to say and gone out separate ways. I wasn't going to put us both back in a position we didn't want to be in just because our reproductive timing was lousy."

"So you went to France." he had gotten that much from Serena.

She nodded. "I started working on my mother's line. Jenny and I created 'Prep' , the funding initially came from Eleanor Waldorf Designs, but when I refused to use our daughter against you..she pulled her involvement. Jenny stayed with me and it's been pretty amazing so far."

"Good for you," Chuck said

And he meant it. It hurt to realize that he'd never supported her interest in design - or even known about it. He certainly had the means to care for her and their daughter. Even if reconciliation hadn't been an option, he could have set her up in her own apartment, in the city so he could visit easily and spend as much time with Charlotte as possible. He could have backed her enterprise from the beginning.

But then, Blair knew that, didn't she? She was well aware of his financial situation.. Her own family could have provided just as well for her, but she choses instead to stay away from him. He had hurt her so badly she'd changed her entire life, cut out the people she'd loved the most. And yet this was the happiest he had seen her in a long time. He was beginning to think he had made a lot of wrong decisions while they were together.

After patting the baby on the back for a good five minutes - burping her, Chuck assumed - Blair moved to a cream and gold bassinet and started to lean over, presumably to lay Charlotte down for the rest of her nap.

"Wait," he said, reaching out a hand and taking a step forward before halting in his tracks. What was he doing? Why had he stopped her?

Because he wasn't yet ready to lose sight of his daughter. Or to be distracted from the reality that he was suddenly a father. A fact that part of him still couldn't seem to comprehend.

"Can I hold her?" he asked.

She looked down at the sleeping child in her arms, indecision clear on her face.

"If it won't wake her," he added as an after thought.

Lifting her head, Blair met his gaze. It wasn't fear of waking the baby that caused her hesitation, he realized - it was her fear of having him near their daughter, of sharing a child that had been hers alone up until now. Not to mention a secret she'd had no intention of revelling.

Finally, with a sigh, she seemed to reach a decision. Or perhaps come to her senses, since they both knew there was no way he'd be kept from his child now that he was aware of Charlotte's existence. No way in hell.

"Of course," she said, the words sounding much more agreeable then she felt, he was sure. Meeting him halfway, she carefully transferred the little girl from her arms to his.

The last child Chuck had held who was this small, this age, had to have been his two year old niece. But as adorable as his sister's children were, as much as he loved them, it didn't hold a candle to how he felt now, cradling his own little princess to his chest.

She was so tiny, so beautiful, so amazingly peaceful in sleep. Chuck soaked in every minuscule feature, from the light dusting of brown hair to her satin soft cheeks, to her tiny fingers.

Chuck tried to imagine hoe Charlotte had looked as soon as she'd been born...her first day home from the hospital...how Blair had looked all rounded and glowing in pregnancy. Tried and failed, because he hadn't been there, hand't known.

He knew then that he wouldn't be leaving for the city without his daughter, without spending more time with her and hearing every every detail of the months that he'd missed.

Drawing his attention back to Blair, he said "It looks like we've got a bit of a problem here. I've been left out of the loop and have some catching up to do. So I'm going to give you two choices."

Before she could interrupt, he pressed on. "You and Charlotte can either pack a bag and come back to the city with me, or you can give me an excuse to stick around here. But either way, I will be staying with my daughter.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Blair wanted nothing more then to snatch Charlotte from Chuck and go running. Find a place to hide herself and her baby until he lost interest and went back to his life.

She knew him better then that though. He would be more inclined to give up breathing than he would to walk away from his child.

There was nowhere she could go, nowhere she could hide that he wouldn't find her. So she might as well save herself the time and trouble and just face the music. She'd composed the symphony, after all.

She'd also been prepared to tell him about her pregnancy as soon as she'd discovered it for herself. Just because things hadn't worked out quite the way she'd planned didn't mean she should disregard her moral values now.

But that didn't mean she was ready to pack up and follow him back to Manhattan like a lost puppy. She had a life of her own.

On the other hand, the thought of Chuck staying in Bridgehampton made her heat pound and brought her as close to suffering a panic attack as she'd ever felt. How could she possible handle having him underfoot - at the boutique and maybe even living with thematic her families estate?

She was trapped between the proverbial rock and a hard place, both of which looked suspiciously like her ex-husband. Stubborn, stoic, amazingly handsome in a suite and tie.

"I can't go back to the city," she blurted out, pretending the sight of Chuck holding their infant daughter in his big, strong arms didn't tug at parts of her that had no business being tugged.

"Fine," he said with a nod, his face resolute and jaw firm. "Then I guess I'm relocating."

Oh, no. That was worse. Wasn't it? Rock, hard place...rock, hard place. Her chest was so tight with panic, she was beginning to see stars from lack of oxygen.

"You can't stay here forever," she told him. "What about Bass Industries?"

"It won't be forever," he responded.

Looking more reluctant then she'd ever seen him, he handed Charlotte back to her, careful not to wake her. Then he reached into his jacket pocket and removed his cell phone.

"But if you think anything back home is more important then being here with my daughter right now, you're crazy. I can afford to take a few weeks away. I just have to make sure everyone knows where I am and can keep things running smoothly in my absence."

With that, he turned and headed for the stairs leading back down to the boutique, dialling as he went.

Rocking back and forth, Blair looked down at her sleeping daughter and felt tears prickle her eyes.

"Oh, baby," she whispered, pressing a kiss to her smooth forehead. "We're in do much trouble."

Chuck was a force to be reckoned with, much like a natural disaster. He was a tornado, an earthquake, a tsunami swooping in and turning Blair's entire life upside down.

Within the hour, he'd been in touch with everyone he'd needed to contact. Put out the word that he would be staying in The Hampton's indefinitely, and that his right hand men -and women - were in charge until further notice.

As far as Blair knew, though, he hadn't told them why he would be away for a while. She'd overheard him on the phone with his Uncle, but all Chuck had said was that the business he was thinking of investing in looked promising and he needed to stick around to take a closer loot at the premises and financials.

Keeping the true reason to himself was probably a smart move, she admitted reluctantly. No doubt if Jack Bass learned that his nephew had a child with his evil ex, he would have a fit. His already sullen scowl would turn even more pinched and he would immediately begin plotting ways to turn this against Chuck in the eyes of the board of Bass Industries.

Even worse he would turn Chuck against her and their baby. Blair imagined that where Chuck took it as a given that he was Charlotte's father, Jack Bass would insist on paternity tests. Dragging her and Chuck into a public, media scandal.

She didn't verbalise her thoughts to Chuck, however. He didn't know how truly horrid his Uncle had been to her while they'd been married and she saw no reason to enlighten him now.

"There," he said, pushing through the door into the back room ere she and Jenny were keeping themselves busy. He slipped his cell phone into his pocket, then shrugged out of his suit jacket.

"That should buy me a few weeks of freedom before the place starts to fall apart and they send the search party."

Jenny was pinning material into a dress dummy, but her feelings on Chuck staying in town were clear in the narrow slits of her eyes and the force she was using to stab the dummy with the little pins.

She didn't like it one little bit, but as Blair had told her while Chuck was making phone calls, they didn't have a choice. Either Chuck stuck around until he got whatever it was that he was after, or he would drag Blair and Charlotte back to the city.

She'd considered a third option - sending Chuck back to the city on his own - but knew that if she pushed him on the issue, it would only cause trouble and hostility. If she refused to allow Chuck time with his daughter, in one town or another, Blair had no doubt it would only spur her ex-husband to throw his weight and his millions around.

And what did that mean? A big ugly custody battle. She was a good mother, so she knew Chuck could never take Charlotte away from her on that basis. But she didnt fool herself, either, the system wouldn't be swayed by the amount of money and power the Bass name could bring, not to mention the Bass lawyers. Blair's father would fight just us hard until it was all out war. Bt it was the last thing Blair wanted. No, if there was any way to avoid a custody fight or any amount of animosity with Chuck whatsoever, then she had to try. It might even mean making arrangements for shared custody and travelling back and forth. But whatever it took to keep Chuck happy and Charlotte with her, she would do.

Even if it meant letting her ex move into her life - and her business and possible her house - for God knew how long.

Finished with the material swatches she had been studying Blair turned. " What about your things? She asked. "Don't you need to go home and collect your personal items?"

Chuck shrugged, and she couldn't help but notice the shift of firm muscle beneath his button down shirt. She remembered only too well what lay beneath that shirt, and how much she'd once enjoyed knowing it belonged to her and her alone.

"I've sent my driver to collect some things. Anything else I need, I'm sure I can purchase here."

He hung his jacket on a hook near the door, then crossed to the bassinet she'd dragged back out of the storeroom once Chuck had figured out what was going on. Charlotte was sleeping inside, stretched out on her little belly, arms and legs akimbo.

"The only question now," Chuck said, gazing down at his little girl, then reaching out to stroke a single finger over Charlotte's soft, chubby cheek, "is where I'll be staying while I'm in town."

Blair opened her mouth, not even sure what she was about to say, only to be interrupted by Jenny.

"We'll, you're not staying with me," his sister announced in no uncertain terms.

Though Jenny's clear dislike of Chuck brought an immediate stab go guilt and the sudden urge to apologise, Blair was unaccountably grateful that Jenny had the nerve to blurt out what she'd been unable to find the courage to tell him herself.

"Thank you so much for the kind invert action," Chuck said, lips twisted with amusement, "but I really couldn't impose."

How typical of Chuck to take Jenny's rudeness in stride. That sort of thing never had fazed him, mainly because Chuck knew who he was, where he came from and what he could do.

Plus, Jenny hadn't always hated her step brother. She didn't hate him now, actually, she was just annoyed with him and took his treatment of Blair personally.

Which was at least partly Blair's fault. After spilling out the story of her rocky marriage, subsequent divorce, unexpected pregnancy and desperate need to get away - with Chuck filling the role of the bad guy slash, mean old ogre under the bridge at every turn - Jenny's opinion of him had dropped like a stone. Ever since then Jenny's only objective have been to avoid Chuck all together.

Blair was still fighting the urge to make excuses for Jenny when Chuck said, "I thought you could recommend a nice hotel."

Blair and Jenny exchanged a look.

"Guess that would be the Harbor Inn just a couple of streets over," Jenny told him. "It's not much, but your only other option is the motel on route 12."

"Harbor Inn," Chuck murmured, brows drawing together. "I didn't realize there was a waterway around here late enough to necessitate a Harbor."

Blair and Jenny exchanged another look, along with mutual ironic smilies.

He looked less then convinced, but didn't say anything. Instead, he moved away from the bassinet and started to unbutton his cuffs, rolling his sleeves up to his elbows.

"As long as there is a bed and bathroom, I'm sure it will be fine. I'll be spending most of my time here with you, anyway."

Blair's eyes widened at that. "You will?"

One corner of his mouth quirkier. "Of course. This is where my daughter is. Besides, if your goal is to expand you line and possible add more locations, we've got a lot to discuss, and possibly a lot to do."

"Wait a minute." She let the pen in her hand drop to the bench top, feeling her breath catch. "I didn't agree to let you have anything to do with my business."

He flashed her a charming, confident grin. "That's why we have so much to discuss. Now," he said, flattening his palms on the edge of the counter. "Are you going to show me to this Inn, or would you prefer to simply give me directions so you and Jenny can both stay here and talk about me after I leave."

Oh, she wanted to stay behind and talk about him. The problem was, he knew it. And now that he'd tossed down the gauntlet by effectively telling her he knew that's exactly what would happen the minute he left the room, she had no choice but to go with him.

Which was exactly why he'd done it.

"I'll take you," she said, then turned to Jenny. "Will you be okay on your own while we're gone?"

The question was more a formality; there were plenty of times when Blair had left Jenny in charge. Still Jenny shot her such a contemptible look Blair nearly chuckled.

"All right. I'll be back in a bit."

She headed for the door, saying to Chuck as she passed, "I just need to grab my purse."

He followed her out, waiting at the bottom of the stairs while she ran up to collect her purse and sunglasses.

"What about the baby?" he asked as soon as she returned.

"He'll be fine."

"Are you sure Jenny can take care of him and her work at the same time?" He pressed as they moved through the store, toward the door.

Blair smiled and waved to the the young girl behind the counter. Once outside, she slipped on her sunglasses before turning to face him.

"Don't let Jenny hear you asking so meshing like that. She's liable to hurl a sewing machine at your head."

In an attempt to draw Chuck's focus away from worrying about Charlotte, Blair said, "will I call a cab or will you?"

"No need," he said walking down the sidewalk. " I have arranged for a rental car. It should be waiting at Brain's office."

Blair kept pace with him as he turned on his heel and continued in the direction of the financial advisors office. She was still dressed in the skirt and blouse she'd worn earlier.  
Chuck looked as suave and at ease as ever in his tailored suit pants and polished dress shoes. His jacket was slung over one shoulder, his other hand tucked casually into his slacks.

When they reached the new looking Mercedes, he held the door while she climbed in the front passenger side, then rounded the back and slid in behind the wheel. He slipped the key in the ignition, then sat back in the seat, turning to face her.

"Will you do something for me before we head for the Inn?" he asked.

A shiver of trepidation skated beneath her skin and she immediately tensed. Hadn't she already done enough? Wasn't she already doing enough simply by accepting Chuck's presence in her life when what she really wanted to do was snatch up her child and head for the hills?

She also couldn't help remembering the many times they'd been alone in his limo together in the past. Their first time together where they'd steamed up the windows with their passion. After they were married, when a simple ride down town would include soft, intentional touches and comfortable intimacy.

She was sure he remembered, too, which only added to the tightening of her stomach and nervous clench of her hands on the strap of her purse where it rested on her lap.

"What?" she managed to say, holding her breath for the answer.

"Show me around town. I don't knowhow long i will be in town, you can't drop everything every time I need directions."

Blair blinked and released her breath. Okay, that wasn't nearly as traumatising as she'd expected. It was actually rather thoughtful of him.

Since her mouth had gone dry, for a second she could only lick her lips and bob her head in agreement. With an approving nod, he started the car and began to pull out of the lot.

"Which way?" he asked.

It took her a moment to think of where to start, and what she should show him, but Bridgehampton was pretty small, mostly stately vacation homes and tourist trap shopping.

"Take a left," she told him. "We'll do Main Street, than ill take you to the Inn."

A lot of the local businesses he could make out for himself, he remembered somethings from the summers he had spent own here as a child with Nate's family. The diner, the drugstore, the flower shop, the post office. A little farther from the centre of town were a couple of fast food restaurants, a gas station, a handful of bars and the country club.

She told him what she knew about the neighbouring business owners and some of the residence.

"That's about it," she told him fifteen minutes later, after pointing him in the general direction of the hotel where he would be staying. "There isn't much to see during the off season."

A small smile curved his lips. "I think you missed something."

She frowned, wondering what he could be referring to.

"You didn't show me where you live," he supplied in a low voice.

"Do you really need to know?" she asked, ignoring the spike of heat that suffused with the glance he gave her.

"Of course. How else will I know where to pick you up for dinner?"

AN; Happy 4th everyone! Hope you all enjoyed your day with your families.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

As much as Blair would have liked to argue with Chuck about his heavy-handedness, in the end, she didn't bother. He had a nasty habit of getting his way in almost every situation, anyway, so what was the point?

She'd also reluctantly decided that, for as long as Chuck was determined to stay in her and Charlotte's lives, it was probably better to simply make nice with him. There was no sense antagonising him or fighting him at every turn when he potentially held so much of her future in his hands.

At the moment, the only thing he seemed to want was time with and information about his daughter. He wasn't trying to take Charlotte away from her or making threats about trying to take her later, even though they both knew he was probably within his rights to do so.

The threatening part, not actual taking. But if she were in his shoes, anger and a sense of betrayal alone would have had her yelling all manner of hostile, menacing things.

So this afternoon when Chuck asked her to show him where she lived, she took him to the large estate on Evergreen Lane. It was a large green estate with several servants, tennis courts and a half mile, tree lined driveway. Blair had spent most summers here as a child and the house remained mostly the same - except for the guessed room that had been converted into a fairytale nursery for Charlotte.

Taking a deep breath, Blair cheeked herself in the hall mirror one last time - though she wasn't sure why she bothered. Yes, it had been a while since she'd had a reason to get so dressed up. Chuck had seen her in everything from her school uniform to full-length ball gowns and priceless jewels. But tonight she wasn't trying to impress him. No, she was pacifying him.

After showing him to the hotel and then letting him drop her off at 'Prep' once again, Blair had finished off her day at the boutique , closed up the shop, and headed home with Charlotte.

While Beth the housekeeper tended to Charlotte, Blair had run upstairs to to change and do her makeup.

She wasn't fixing herself up for Chuck, she told her reflection. It was simply that she was taking advantage of a dinner invitation that included the chance to look like the women she used to be.

That's the only reason she was wearing a strapless red dress, heels and dangling diamond earrings. It was over the top for even the priciest restaurant in town, but she didn't care. She might never again get an opportunity to remind Chuck of just what he had given up, when he let her go.

The doorbell rang before she was ready for it and her heart lurched in her chest. She quickly swiped on another layer of lipstick, then made sure she had everything she needed in her tiny silver clutch.

Halfway down the stairs, she heard voices and knew that Beth had answered the door in her absence. At the bottom of the landing, she found Chuck dressed in the same suite from earlier. His hands were linked behind his back and he was smiling down at Beth with all the charm of a used car salesman. When he spotted her, Chuck transferred that grin to her.

"Hi," he said. "You look lovely."

Blair had to resist the urge to smooth a hand down the front of her dress or recheck the knot of her upswept hair. "Thank you. Would you like to come in?"

"Yes, thank you." Chuck brushed past the housekeeper and through the entryway. He gave her house a cursory once-over and Blair wondered if he thought her home an appropriate place for his child. But when he turned back, his expression held no censure, only mild curiosity.

"Where's Charlotte?" he asked.

"The kitchen," Beth supplied, closing the door, then moving past him in that direction. "I was just giving her dinner.

Chuck shot Blair a glance before waving her ahead of him as they followed Beth through the living room to the back of the house. "I thought you were still breast-feeding."  
She flushed, feeling heat climb over her cheeks toward her hairline. "I am, but not exclusively. She also has juice, cereal and a selection of baby food."

"Good," he murmured with a short nod, watching as Beth rounded the kitchen island and took a seat. "Th longer a child breast-feeds, the better. Increases immunity, builds the child's sense of security and helps with mother/child bonding."

"And how do you know that?" She asked, genuinely surprised.

Charlotte was strapped into her highchair, face and bib splattered with a mix of baby foods. She looked just like a Jackson Pollock painting as she kicked her little feet and slapped the sides of the plastic seat that held her.

Without waiting for an invitation, Chuck sat down opposite Beth, leaning forward to kiss Charlotte's head. The baby giggled and Chuck grinned in return.

"Contrary to popular belief," he murmured, not bothering to turn in her direction, "I didn't become CEO by nepotism alone. I actually happen to be quite resourceful when I need to be."

"Let me guess - you dug out your laptop and hit the Internet."

"I'm not telling," he answered, tossing her a teasing half smile. Then to Beth he said, "May I?" Indicating to the baby food jars spread out in front of her.

The older women gave him a look that clearly said she didn't think he was capable, but she waved him on all the same.

He picked up the miniature spoon with a carton character on the handle and began feeding Charlotte in tiny bites, waiting long enough in between them for the baby to gum and smack and swallow.

Blair stood back, watching ...and wishing. Wishing she hadn't agreed to dinner with Chuck this evening, after all. Wishing she hadn't invited him in and that he hadn't wanted to see Charlotte before they left. Wishing this whole scene wasn't so domestic, so bittersweet, so much of a reminder of what could have been.

Chuck looked entirely too comfortable feeding his daughter, even dressed as he was. He was also oddly good at it, which she wouldn't have expected from a man who hadn't spent much time around babies before.

When Charlotte began to fuss and wouldn't take another bite, Chuck set aside the jar and spoon, and brushed his hand together.

"I'd like to pick her up for a minute," he said splitting his gaze between his expensive suite and his infant daughter, "but..."

"Definitely not," Blair agreed, grabbing a damp cloth to wipe the worst of the excess food from her daughter face, "Let Beth clean her up and maybe you can hold her when we get back, if she's still awake."

Chuck didnt look completely pleased with that idea, but since the alternative was ruining a suit that probably cost more then most people's monthly mortgage payment, he wisely refrained from reaching out and getting covered by Gerber's finest.

"Shouldn't we go?" she prompted as he pushed to his feet and Beth rounded the table to scoop Charlotte from her highchair.

Still looking reluctant to leave, Chuck nodded and followed her back through the house to the front door. Outside, he led her to the rental car, and helped her inside.

"What do you do when she's a mess like that?" Chuck asked once he'd climbed in beside her.

She twisted in her seat to face him, noticing the frown pulling at the corners of his mouth. "What do you mean?"

"How do you not pick up your own child?"

Blair blinked, wondering if she'd heard him correctly. Oh, she heard the words clearly enough, but was that a hint of guilt stealing through his tone? Guilt from a man she hadn't thought understood the concept? Who'd let her walk away without a fight, with barely an explanation?

"Chuck." Shaking her head, she ducked her chin to keep him from seeing the amusement tugging at her lips. "I know this is all new to you. I know finding out about Charlotte was quite a shook, but you have nothing to feel guilty about. She's a baby. As long as her needs are met, she doesn't care who's feeding her, who's holding her, who's changing her diaper."

If anything, Chuck's frown deepened. "That isn't true. Infants know the difference between their parents and a simply babysitter, between their mother and father."

"All right," she acquiesced, "but rest assured that there are plenty of times I don't pick her up right after she's eaten because I don't want her to get food on my clothes. Or worse. Believe me once you've had soured milk or formula spit up all over you, you learn fast not to wear nice clothes and to keep a towel handy."

Without a thought of what she was doing, she reached across the console and patted his thigh. "If you're going to be in town for a while you might want to consider some more casual clothes. That's the great thing about Beth I can't do everything all by myself and she helps pick up the slack."

Meeting her gaze, Chuck wrapped his fingers around hers, holding her hand in place, even when she tried to pull it away. "I should be the one helping you with Charlotte, not a housekeeper, not Jenny. But don't worry, we're going to talk about that over dinner. Among other things."

XOXO

Despite the threat of the big talk and being pinned to her chair like a bug under Chuck's intense scrutiny and personal version of the Spanish Inquisition, dinner was actually quite enjoyable. He took her to the hotel's dining room, and attempted to ply her with wine and crab cakes. Of course, since she was breast-feeding, the wine was a no-no but the crab cakes were delicious. Maybe because he let her eat them in peace.

As soon as the waitress topped off their coffees and they made their dessert selections, however, she knew the stay of execution was over. Chuck cupped his hands around the ceramic mug and leaned forward in his seat, causing her to tense slightly in her own.

"What was the pregnancy like?" he asked, getting straight to the point, as usual.

Blair blew out a small breath, relieved that he was at least starting out with an easy question instead of immediately launching into demands and ugly accusation.

"It was pretty typical, I think," she told him. "Bearing in mind that my only real point of reference is Serena, and I'm not nearly as 'boho-earth mother' as she is. But there were no real complications and even the morning sickness wasn't to bad. It didn't always limit itself to mornings, which made getting things done a bit of an adventure," she added with a chuckle, "but it wasn't as terrible as I'd expected."

From there he wanted to know every detail of Charlotte's birth. Date, time, length, weight, how long her labour had lasted - all facts that she'd take for granted. In his shoes, though, she could imagine how desperate she would be to learn and memorise every one of them.

"I should have been there," he said softly, staring down at the table. Then he lifted his gaze to hers. "I deserved to be there. For all of it."

Her heart lurched and she braced herself for the onslaught, for every bit of anger and resentment she knew he had to be feeling...and that she probably deserved. But instead of lashing out, his voice remained level.

"As much as it bothers me, there's no going back, we can only move forward. So here's the deal, Blair."

His eyes bore into her, the same look she suspected he gave rival business associates during merges and tricky acquisitions.

"Now that I know about Charlotte, I want in on everything. I'll stick around here for a while, until you get used to the idea. Until I get the hang of being a father and she starts to recognise me that way. But after that, I'm going to want to take her home."

At that, at the mention of his home, not hers, Blair went still, her shoulders stiffening and her fingers tightening on the handle of her coffee cup.

"That's not a threat," he added quickly, obviously noticing how tense her body had gone. "I'm not saying I want to take her back to the city forever. I honestly don't know yet how we're going to work out the logistics of that, but we can discuss it later. I'm only talking about a visit so I can introduce her to my family."

"And what if I don't agree? To any of it."

One dark brow winged upward. "Then I'll be forced to threaten, I suppose. But is that really the direction you want to go? I've been pretty amicable about this entire situation so far, even though I think we both know I have more then enough reason to be furious over it."

Taking a sip of his coffee, he tipped his head to the side looking much calmer then she felt.

"If you want me to be furious and toss around ugly threats you know I can follow through on, that's fine, just say the word. But if you'd rather act like two mature adults determined to create the best environment for their child, then I suggest you go along with my plans."

"Do I have a choice?" She grumbled, understanding better then ever the adage about being stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Chuck's smile was equal parts cocky and confident. "You had the choice of wether or not to tell me you were pregnant in the first place, and you decided not to, so...not really. The ball is in my court now."


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

The ball was most definitely in Chuck's court -along with everything else. But then, she'd known that the minute he'd walked up the stairs and discovered he had a little girl, hand't she? Her only option now was to play nice and hope he would continue to do the same.

Chuck's hand was on her elbow as they left the restaurant, guiding her along the carpeted passage toward the lobby. Old fishing nets and decorative life preservers lined the walls and she suddenly realised how odd the decor was. Especially since the hotel's dining room didn't even particularly specialise in seafood dishes.

"Come upstairs with me," he murmured suddenly just above her ear.

Tearing her gaze from the large mounted swordfish, she flashed Chuck a startled, disbelieving look, only to have him chuckle at her reaction.

"That isn't a proposition," he assured her, then waggled his eyebrows in an exaggerated attempt at flirtation. "Although I wouldn't be opposed to a bit of after dinner seduction."

A the lobby, he steered her to the left, away from the hotel's main entrance an in the direction of the wide, Gone with the Wind-esque stairwell that led to the guest rooms.

"I have something to show you," he continued as they slowly climbed the stairs, her heels digging into the thick carpeting, faded in places from years of wear.

"Now that sounds like a proposition. Or maybe a bad pickup line," she told him.

He slanted her a grin, digging into his pocket for a room key. Not a card, but an honest to goodness key, complete with a lighthouse key ring.

"You know me better than that. I didn't need cheesy pick up lines with you the first time around, I don't need them now."

Wen they reached his door, he unlocked it, then stepped back to let her pass into the room ahead of him. Chuck's room was blissfully lacking in the Oceanside motif that decorated the main lobby. Instead, the walls boasted tiny pink roses on yellowing wallpaper, and both the single window and four-poster bed were covered in white eyelet lace. Very old-fashioned and grandmotherly.

It was almost funny to see tall, dark, morgen businessman Chuck Bass standing in the middle of all the extremely formal, nineteenth century finery. He looked completely out of place, like a zebra in the dolphin enclosure at the zoo.

But looking out of place and being out of place were two different things, Chuck didn't seem to feel the lest bit out of place. Closing the door behind them, he shrugged out of his jacket and tossed it over the back of a burgundy brocade wing chair on his way to the brass-plated desk against the far wall.

While he lifted the lid of his laptop and hit the button to boot up the computer, Blair stood back and enjoyed the view. Shallow of her, she was sure. Not to mention inconsistent, considering how vehemently she protested-to herself and anyone else who would listen-that the divorce had been a blessing and she was over him. Completely and totally over him.

Being his ex-wife didn't keep her from being a living, breathing, red-blooded women, however. And every one of the red-blood cells in her body appreciated the sight of a healthy, well built man like Chuck walking away.

His broad shoulders and wide back stretched the material of his expensive dress shirt as he moved. Dark slacks that probable cost more the the hotel room hugged his hips, and more importantly, his butt. A very nice, well rounded butt that didn't seem to have changed much since they'd been together.

Lifting a hand to her face, she covered her eyes and silently chastised herself for being so weak willed. What was wrong with her? Was she crazy? Or catching a bug? Or we're her hormones still dreadfully out of whack because of the pregnancy?

Spreading her fingers a few brief centimetres, she peeked through and knew exactly what her problem was.

Number one - she knew what lay beneath all that cotton and wool. She knew the strength of his muscles, the texture of his skin. She knew how he smelled and how he felt pressed up against her.

Number two - her hormones probably were out of whack - and not just the pregnancy variety. The regular ones seemed to be turned all upside down, as well.

Which was no surprise. She'd always been a total pushover where Chuck was concerned. One smouldering look and her bones had turned to jelly. One brush of his knuckles across her cheek or light touch of his lips on hers and she'd been putty in his hands.

Given how long it had been since they'd been together - how long it had been since she'd been anything more than a human incubator and first time mommy - it was no wonder, really, that her mind was wandering down all sorts of deliciously naughty garden paths.

And no doubt if Chuck knew, or even suspected, he would take full advantage of her vulnerability and inner turmoil, so it would be wise of her not to do or say anything to give him the wrong idea. Or any ideas at all, for that matter.

Through her fingers, Blair watched him undo the top couple of buttons on his shirt and loosen his collar. Such a familiar habit. She remembered him doing the same thing almost every night when he got home from work.

She lowered her hands from her face just before he picked up the laptop and turned back around. Crossing the room, he lowered himself to the edge of the bed, set the laptop beside him, and then patted the pristine white coverlet.

"Come sit down for a minute," he said, "I want to show you some perspectives ideas for your business."

That got her attention, allaying some of her suspicions and fears- and giving rise to knew ones. Moving to the bed, she sat down, tucking the skirt of her dress beneath her to keep from flashing to much leg.

He clicked a couple of buttons, then turned the screen so she could see it more easily, "These are just some charts for expected growth, your expenses, and overhead, et cetera. Of course, there are a lot of aspects I'm sure I'm not familiar with, so it will need to be adjusted. But this gives us a rough estimate and an idea of where to start."

It was good. Encouraging, even. And the idea that these simply numbers could one day lead to expanding her line and stores cause her heart to leap in her chest.

There was only one problem.

Lifting her head, she met Chuck's gaze. "Why did you do all this?" She asked.

"You need a partner to pull this off, Blair. You know that or you wouldn't have gone to Brain in the first place."

Her pulse slowed and the temperature in the room feel ten degrees. Or maybe it was only her own internal temperature that dropped like a stone.

"I told you, Chuck, I won't take your money."

Shoulders going back, his spine straightened almost imperceptibly, and his jaw went square and tight. A clear indication he was about to get stubborn and lay down the law according to Chuck Bass.

Mouth a thin, flat line, he said, "And I told you, Blair, that I'm not going anywhere. Not for a while, anyway."

A beat passed while the tension seemed to leak from his stiff form and jumped across the bad into her. The last thing she needed was a reminder of Chuck's refusal to leave town now that he knew about Charlotte, and all the fears and concerns his presence burnout to the surface.

"So as long as I'm sticking around," he continued, "we might as well use the time wisely. Why not work on the business plan?"

Oh, he was smooth and made so much sense, she'd always hated that, because it put him entirely too close to being right.

Of course, he usually was right, at least where business issues were concerned, which was even more annoying. Especially since he knew it and often came across as just this side of smug in that awareness.

"I don't want your help, Chuck."

Rising from the bed, she linked her arms around her middle and paced across the room. When she hit the closed door, she turned and paced back, keeping her gaze locked on the worn and faded carpeting beneath her feet.

"I don't want to be tied to you, to owe you for anything."

"We'll, it's a little late for that, don't you think?"

She stopped, lifted her head to meet his eyes. One dark brow was raised, his lips curled in a wry half smile.

"We have a child together. I'd say that ties us together more strongly than any business plan could."

She blinked. Dammit. There it was again. He was right and being smug about it.

For better or worse, they were tied to each other now until the end of time through their daughter. Birthdays, school events, extracurricular activities, chicken pox, measles, puberty, her debutant ball...

But given how ugly and heartbreaking - at least on her part - their separation had been, it was no wonder she wasn't looking forward to sharing any of that with him. And no wonder she'd tried to keep Charlotte a secret to begin with. It might not have been the right thing to do, but it sure made life a lot less complicated.

"That's different," she said quietly.

He inclined his head, though whether in agreement or simply acquiescence, she wasn't sure.

"However you feel about that," he said slowly, "it doesn't change the facts. I'm going to be in town, getting to know my daughter and making up for lost time, for several weeks, at least. You might as well take advantage of that - and of my willingness to invest in you business."

Pushing up from the bed, he came to stand in front of her cupping his hands over her shoulders. His slightly calloused palms felt rough against her bare skin, his warmth seeping into to her pores.

"Think about it, B," he murmured barely above a whisper. His eyes bore into hers. "Use your head here instead of sticking to stubborn pride. The smart and savvy businesswoman in you knows this opportunity you'd be crazy to pass up. Even if it is coming from your despicable ex-husband."

He said the last with a quick wink and a self-deprecating quirk of his full, sexy lips.

It was that wink and the fact that he knew how badly she didn't want him around but apparently wasn't holding it against her that made her stop and think, just as he'd suggested.

Think through his offer logically and reasonably, and with the level-headed, straightforward intelligence that had convinced her to take the risky financial plunge opening her boutique in the first place. Weigh her options. Weigh her desire to expand and open another location and accept a much needed infusion of cash and support against her desire to keep Charlotte to herself, keep miles upon miles of distance between her and Chuck - both figuratively and literally - and maintain complete control over her business.

Her business, her security, her daughter.

Despite the bitterness involved on both sides of their divorce, he had never been deliberately cured. He hadn't tried to hurt her, hadn't used his powerful influence or fortune to make her stay.

Chuck had never been that type of man. He'd always treated her like a princess even before she had left Nate. He may have played the part of rich, party boy, but Blair knew that Chuck was a gentleman

Anything involving Charlotte would remain strictly personal, and he would deal with her on a personal, father to mother level. Anything involving the line would remain strictly business and he would treat it us such.

If he pulled his investment, it would be only his money and professional ties that went with him, not his love for Charlotte or determination to be in his daughter's life. And on the other side of the coin, if they were at odds about something concerning Charlotte, he would not pull his financial backing just to make her miserable.

And for better or worse, Chuck was Charlotte's father, a part of her. He was also probably the only investor she would ever find who was actually willing and able to give her line the influx it needed.

She'd been silent for so long, she was surprised Chuck didn't check her for a pulse. She also suspected she would have he mother of all headaches soon just from the strain of thinking so hard.

But in the end, she didn't follow her head or even her heart. She followed her gut.

"All right," she told him, the words nearly torn from a throat gone tight with the strain go her internal struggle. "But I don't want your charity. If we're going to do this, then I want it to be completely official and aboveboard. We'll have Brian draw up the investment papers so its all legal."

Chuck smiled gently, the sort of smile a parent offers a reluctant child, almost as though he was getting ready to humour her.

"Fine. I'll call Brian in the morning and get the the ball rolling."

She nodded slowly, still reluctant, still unsure.

"So that's the business end of things. We'll iron out the details tomorrow,"' he said. Then he ran his hands down the bare flesh of her arms from her shoulders to her elbows and lowered his voice to a near whisper. "Now on to something a bit more personal."

Her first thought was that he wanted to discuss Charlotte again, and her heart dropped all the way to her stomach, only to jump back up and lodge in her throat. Her chest grew tight as she held her breath and waited - for the bomb to drop, for him to demand full custody or announce that he was taking their baby girl back to the city with him.

Instead, he tugged her close, lowered his head and kissed her.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

(Warning; the following contains adult content and is not recommended for those under 18. Feel free to skip right to chapter eight if you feel it may offended you delicate sensibilities)

For a moment, Blair stood completely frozen, eyes wide, shock holding her immobile. But then his heat, his passion, seeped into her, and she began to lean against him, his eyes sliding closed on a silent sigh.

Chuck's hands slipped from her elbows to her waist, pulling her even more tightly to him and holding her there with his arms crossed like iron bands at her back. His lips were warm and firm and masterful, plundering even as he attempted to coax and seduce.

He tasted like coffee and cream, and felt like heaven. Just as she remembered.

Kissing Chuck had always been pure pleasure, like a cools glass of water on a hot summer day or sinking into a relaxing bubble bath after a long, exhausting day.

Hand drifting up to cup her cheek, Chuck pulled away just enough to let her catch her breath and meet his gaze. His eyes were dark with desire that Blair knew must be reflected in her own. Whatever she wanted it or not, whether she liked it or not, there was no denying the heat that flared between them. Even now, after a year of separation, after the end of their marriage.

"I've been waiting to do that all evening," Chuck murmured, his thumb slowly stroking just beneath her lower lip.

She wished she could deny feeling the same way, but had to admit that the thought of kissing him again had crossed her mind a few times since their unexpected reunion, as well. Especially during dinner, while they'd stared at one another across the candlelit table.

But kissing him wasn't a good idea. Being alone with him in his hotel room for much longer wasn't a good idea.

She should leave. Put a hand to his chest, push him away and get out while she could still make her legs work.

His other hand came up to frame her face, his fingers running through her hair.

But her legs didn't move. It was as though her entire body had turned to stone, every muscle statue still.

"This is a bad idea," she told him, tutting her thoughts into words and forcing them past stiff, dry lips. "I should go."

"Or you could stay." he whispered. "And we can see about turning a bad idea into a good one."

No, she needed to leave. And she would, just as soon as she could get her body to obey the commands of her brain.

But the connection between the two had obviously been blocked our severed or scrambled in some way. Because she didn't move. She didn't step back, or push him away, or voice further arguments against making any more monumental mistakes.

She simply stood there and watched his mouth descend once again. Stood there and let his lips cover hers, let his fingers dig into her hair and cradle her scalp. Let his tongue tease and taunt until she had no choice but to open her mouth and invite him inside.

His tongue twined with hers and she groaned, any semblance of rational thought flying right out the window. Good or bad, she was in it now with very little might left to fight. She wasn't even sure she wanted to anymore.

Though they were already touching, he tugged her even closer, so that her breasts flattered against his chest and the evidence of his arousal pressed between her legs.

It wouldn't take Chuck much more of his intense ministrations for him to know just how aroused she was, too. Already, his hands were wandering down her side and over her hips, his fingers slowly rucking up the skirt of her dress until he could unhook her stockings from her garter.

Her own fingers went to the buttons at the front of his shirt, slipping one after another through their holes. When she reached the bottom, she switched to unbuckling his belt and loosening the top button of his pants, then tugging the shirt's tail free. Once both sides fell open, she slipped her hands under the expensive material and put her palms flat against the warm, smooth skin of his chest and stomach.

He groaned. She moaned. The sounds met and mingled sending shivers from their locked lips all the way down her spine.

As though he felt them, too, Chuck's hand went to the small of her back and followed the line of her vertebrae up, up, up. He kneaded her neck a short second before catching the clasp of her dress's zipper and tugging it down in one long ziiiiiiiiiiip of sensation.

Curling her nails into his chest, she slumped into him as wave after wave of longing rolled through her. It was almost too much to bear, melting her bones and stealing the breath from her lungs. If he hadn't been holding her, she was sure she would have collapsed to the ground in a pile of skin and rumpled red fabric.

He released her mouth, allowing her to suck in some much needed oxygen while he tugged at her dress, letting the fabric pool at her feet. Hooking his thumbs into the tops of her stockings, he started to skim them down her legs following them until he knelt in front of her on one knee.

With a hand at her ankle, he said, "Lift."

She did, and he slipped both her shoe and stocking off her foot.

"Lift," he said again, repeating the action on her other leg, leaving her standing in nothing but her bra and panties. A strapless black demi-bra with scalloped lace edging and lacy, boy-cut panties that covered more then enough in the front, but left half moons of bare flesh visible from the back.

From his position on the floor, Chuck must have noticed the peekaboo style of her underwear, because he lifted his head and shot her a grin that could only be described as wolffish.

"Lovely," he murmured, his hands cupping the backs other calves, then her knees, then her thighs until her thighs quivered and she wasn't sure she could remain upright much longer.

Kissing a line up the centre of her torso, he climbed slowly to his feet. Reaching around her back, he unhooked her bra in one quick, deft movement. Only the last minute crossing of her arms kept the garment from falling away completely.

"Take it off. All of it."

The gruff order sent her stomach flip-flopping and brought goose bumps to every inch of her exposed flesh. Which, considering her state of undress, was a considerable amount.

For a brief moment, she considered jumping back into her dress and running for the hills. But that nice, thick wall of lust was still firmly in place. What she needed, she realized, was a more level playing field.

Arms still crossed over her breasts to hold her bra in place, she stepped back. Just one small step away from him.

"Not yet," she told him, the words coming out more confidently then she felt.

He arched an eyebrow and the message in his eyes clearly telegraphed that if she tried to cut and run, he would chase after her.

But she had no intention of running, only of evening things out a bit so that she wasn't the only one suffering a chill.

"You're overdressed," she pointed out. "So you first."

His right brow rose to meet the left and a muscle began to twitch along his jaw. Lifting his arms to waist height, he unbuttoned one cuff, then the other. With a roll of his broad shoulders, he shrugged out of his shirt completely, letting the pristine material float to the floor.

Blair swallowed. Making him strip down to next to nothing had seemed like a good idea at the time, but now that his chest was bare, she wasn't so sure.

Without giving her time to regroup or even brace herself for more, he moved his hands to the front of his pants and slowly lowered the zipper. Kicking off his shoes, he let the pants drop.

"Better?" he asked, barely a foot of space between them.

Not better. Definitely not better. If possible , it was worse. Because now, in. Addition to feeling anxious and exposed, she was also feeling extremely overwhelmed.

How could she have forgotten what this man looked like naked? Or nearly naked, at any rate.

When they had been married, Chuck's good looks had amused her. The fact that he turned heads and invited so much female attention hadn't bothered her in the least, because she knew that at the end of the day, he was all hers. Other women could look, but she was the only one who go to touch.

Closing the space between them, he carefully pried her arms away from her breasts, but used his own chest to hold the bra in place. He ran his hands down the inside of her arms, then linked their fingers together. Just the way he used to, the way that he used to make her feel so close to him, so cherished.

Pressing his lips to hers, he whispered the words that had started it all, "Are you sure?"

He started into her eyes until she gave him the slightest nod. Ten he kissed her and started backing her slowly toward the bed.

The backs of her thighs hit the edge of the mattress and she toppled over, but Chuck followed her down, so smoothly, it felt almost choreographed. The movement finally dislodged her bra and he grabbed it by the cup and tossed it aside.

His chest pressed against her breasts and abraded the tight peaks of her nipples. She moaned, wrapping her arms around his shoulders while he kissed all but about three functioning brain cells out of her head.

Shifting his hands to her hips, he hooked his thumbs into the waist of her panties and dragged them down. He lifted her just enough to slip them off, then quickly she'd his own.

Insecurities there anted to surface again, reminding Blair that it had been months upon months since they'd been together...that she'd gone though a pregnancy and childbirth since then...that she had spent her first trimester in a deep derision over the break up of her marriage and the prospect of being a single mother - and therefore had spent a good deal of time in bed with boxes of imported French macaroons and German chocolate.

Her hips were wider than before, her stomach far from flat, her thighs a bit more well rounded. The only upside to her new, more curvaceous figure was her bosom. Whether it was due to the pre-baby caloric binges or the post baby breast feeding, the increase in bra size was kind of nice. And being bigger up top helped to keep the rest of her body in proper proportion.

But whether her recent physical changes were good or bad, Chuck didn't seem to mind either way. In fact, he didn't even seem to notice. Or if he did, he was enjoying them enough that he didn't feel the need to comment.

Knowing that allowed Blair to relax and stop obsessing. Chuck's hands on her body, his mouth trailing along her jaw, her throat, her shoulder, her collarbone, were too potent to ignore for long, anyway. As was the need to touch him in return.

She stroked his back, toyed with the hair at the nape of his neck. Nibbled his ear and rubbed her cheek against the slight stubble that was growing in and would need to be shaved clean again in the morning.

His erection was pressed between them, rubbing in tantalising places and she arched slightly to feel even more of that ridged length against her belly and lower. With a low growl, Chuck sank his teeth into the muscle that ran from the side of her throat to her shoulder. She sucked in a sharp breath, groaning at the light stab of pleasure and digging her nails into the flesh of his back to repay the favour.

"Stop teasing," she ordered more than a little breathlessly just above his ear.

"You started it," he retorted, words muffled as he spoke into her skin. She linked her legs around his hips and reached between them to take him in a firm, but careful grasp. He let out a hiss of breath, his eyes falling closed. Giving him a little taste of his own medicine, she tightened her fingers around his arousal, causing him to gasp and flex his hips.

His smile widened a second before he swooped in to place a rough, hard kiss on her lips. Then he reached down to cover her hand with his. Slowly, he pried her fingers away from that most sensitive of body parts and raised her arm over her head, pinning Tito the mattress.

Shifting, he settled more fully between her legs, the tip of his erection nudging her opening. And then he slowly, carefully, his mouth still covered hers, absorbing the heartfelt moans his agonising entry dragged from her throat.

Like so many times in the past she marvelled at how well they fit together, how every part of her body seemed to be moulded, sculpted, designed for every part of his body. Even with the physical changes she'd gone through over the past year, that hadn't altered.

She lifted her hips, meeting him thrust for thrust, letting the motion, the flesh on flesh sensation wash over her in ever increasing waves. Her lungs burned, struggling for air while the rest of her body struggled for completion. Every part of her tingled, tightening in longing, in expectation.

She wanted - no, needed - what only Chuck could give her. And while slow and steady might be good for some things, like marathons and piano lessons, that's not what she was interested in right now. She wanted hard and fast and now, now, now!

"Chuck, please," she begged, wrapping her arms more securely around his neck before leaning up to nip his earlobe. Then she sank her teeth even harder into his shoulder.

His entire body shuddered from head to toe above her, his hands grasping her waist and digging in. He pounded into her with even more force, making her cry out, making himself cry out.

Pressure built until she wanted to scream and then suddenly the dam burst. Pleasure spilled over her in a splash of heat and colourful sparks, like fireworks going off overhead.

She called his name and clung to him for dear life, absorbing the delicious impact of his final thrusts, and finally his full weight as he collapsed atop her with a long, low groan of satisfied completion.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

"This was probably a bad idea," Blair murmured.

Chuck had wondered how long it would take her to start in on her list of regrets.

They were lying side by side, flat on their backs on the lumpy, queen size hotel mattress. Blair had the sheets pulled up to her armpits, held in place over her ample breasts by both hands. He was a bit more relaxed, stretched out and letting the sheet fall where it would, low on his abdomen and across his hips.

But while he was obviously taking their minor indiscretion in stride, he couldn't disagree with her on the 'bad idea' part. He wasn't sorry, since making love with Blair wasn't something he could ever regret or apologise for, but she was right that it hadn't been the smartest decision of his life.

He wasn't even sure what had possessed him to kiss her in the first place.

Maybe because he'd been thinking about it all night, his eyes straying over and over agin to her mouth and the luscious cleavage viewable above the bodice of her dress.

Maybe because he hadn't been able to get her out of his head since the moment he'd seen her again after such a long absence...and after pretty much determining that he would never see her again at all.

Or maybe because she was simply irresistible. For him, she always had been.

It almost didn't surprise him that they'd made a child together at the very moment that their marriage had been fallen apart around them. Despite their differences and the problems that had plagued them there at the end, physical comparability had never even made it onto the list. No matter how big a fight they might have had, it never seemed to take them long to come back together and set the sheets on fire.

It was a relief to know that hadn't changed. They were no longer Married, she'd hidden his baby form him and neither of them had a very clear vision of what the future held, but at least he knew the passion was still there. More then passion - lust longing and desire thick enough to land a 747 on.

His leg brushed against hers beneath the covers and a jolt of that passion times ten shot through him. She jerked away from him, letting him know in no uncertain terms that his current state of semi-arousal would definitely be going to waste.

"You're right," he said, agreeing with her earlier statement. "Probably wasn't the wisest thing to do. At least not under the current circumstances."

"There's the understatement of the century," she grumbled, rolling to the side of the bed and carefully sliding her bare legs out from under the top sheet.

She sat there for a minute, not moving, and Chuck took the opportunity to admire the short fall of chocolate hair around her shoulders, the supple line of her spine, and the gentle curves of her torso from the back. She'd put on a bit of weight with the pregnancy, but it didn't take away from her attractiveness one damn bit.

If anything, it made her even more beautiful, filling her out with sensual, womanly curves in all the right places. He had certainly enjoyed exploring those curves with his hands and lips, feeling them so soft and gentle against his much harder naked length.

One corner of his mouth lifted in amusement, not only from the delectable view, but from the snarly tone of her voice. She'd always had such a way with words, and a way of delivering them that often delighted him.

It had annoyed the hell out of her when she'd been in a snit, telling him off, and would catch him grinning. Not because he wasn't listening or taking her seriously, but because he'd always loved watching her and listening to her - even when she was chewing him out.

The way she moved, pacing back and forth and waving her arms. The way her breasts rose and fell in agitation, following the cadence of her rant. What could he say...it turned him on. And nine times out of ten, their arguments had led to phenomenal make up sex, so there was really no downside to riling her up a little more by letting her think he was laughing off her anger or upset.

In hindsight, he could see how that might have led to some of the problems that had prompted them to split. He'd never meant to deride her feelings or opinions on anything he'd simply believed their relationship was secure enough that any differences or misunderstandings that had would blow over just as they had in the past.

How wrong he'd been. And he hadn't seen it coming until it was too late. Too damn late.

"It can't happen again," she said, still facing the other direction.

For a moment, he remained trapped in his head and thought she was talking about their divorce. That definitely couldn't happen again, and if he had it to do over, it might not have happened in the first place.

Then he realised she meant the sex. Tonight's unplanned, unexpected, but definitely not unsatisfying, indiscretion.

"Chuck," she said when he didn't respond. Twisting slightly, she tilted her head until she could see him from the corner of her eye, then repeated more firmly, "This can't happen again."

Rolling to his side, he propped himself up on one elbow, letting silence fill the room while he studied her. After a minute to two, he murmured, "What do you want me to say, Blair? That I'm sorry we made love? That I don't hope we get the chance to do it again...frequently and with great enthusiasm?" He shrugged the shoulder that wasn't holding him up. "Sorry, but I'm not going to do that."

"What is wrong with you?" she charged, all but leaping from the bed, dragging the sheet along with her. It caught on the corners of the mattress, of course, but not before sliding from his hips and leaving him in the buff down to his ankles.

She turned, yanking at the cheap, industrial grade white cotton until it came free, pointedly ignoring his total nudity. With a huff, she yanked the quilted coverlet from the foot of the bed and tossed it over him, head and all. He chuckled, lowering it just in time to watch her wrap the sheet like a toga around her own naked form.

"We're divorced, Chuck," she pointed out, as though he weren't painfully aware of their current marital status. Or lack thereof.

She stormed around the room gathering her clothing, piece by degraded piece. "Divorced couples aren't supposed to sleep together."

"Maybe not, but we both know it happens all the time." He waved a hand to encompass the rumpled bed and their current state of postcoital undress.

"We'll, it shouldn't," she argued back, doing her best to hold up the sheet while she struggled into her underwear. "Besides, you hate me."

A beat passed while the air in the room sizzled with growing tension. "Says who?"

At the soft spoken question, Blair jerked to a halt and lifted her head to meet his gaze. The lower half of the sheet, which had been hiked up around her thoughts while she fought with her panties, fell to the ground.

"Don't you?" She asked just as softly. "I mean, you do. I know you do. Or at least, you should. I didn't tell you I was pregnant. I didn't tell you about Charlotte."

His brows crossed and his mouth dipped down in a scowl at the reminder. He'd been working hard to forget that part of his reason for being in town. Or more to the point, had been willing to suspend his anger and feelings of betrayal long enough to partake of Blair's lovely body and enjoy the tactile sensation of having her in his arms and bed again after so long.

He took in her still half naked form, wrapped like a Greek goddess in pristine white cotton. Sure, all of the reasons he should hate her were still there. And no doubt they had many issues to work out. But for some reason, at the moment, he just couldn't get his temper to flare.

"Here's a bit of advice," he told her, cocking a brow and trying not to let his frown slip up into a grin. " When someone has temporarily forgotten that they have a reason to be mad at you, it's probably better not to remind them."

"But you should be mad at me," she said quietly, holding his gaze for a long, drawn out second before turning her back to him and continuing to dress.

Chuck watched as she struggled with her bra, then let the sheet fall as she hooked the lingerie behind her back. He watched the light play on the pale canvas of her skin and smooth lines of her body as she moved.

Interesting, he thought, fighting the urge to drag her back to bed. She seemed to want him to be angry with her.

On the one hand, at least he knew she hadn't slept with him in an effort to cloud his mind and seduce him into forgetting that she tried to keep his daughter from him. On the other, she'd have been wise to do almost anything to stay on his good side at this point. To avoid acrimony, a possible custody battle or to keep him from simply picking up and taking Charlotte home with him, leaving her few options to get her back.

Granted, before today, he hadn't spoken with Blair in over a year, and the fact that she'd left him meant he probably hadn't understood her all that well to begin with. But the only explanation he could think of for why she'd remind him of what stood between them was that she needed something between them. A wall. A barrier.

If he hated her, he might not want to be with her again. If he hated her, he might get fed up and storm home to New York - preferable without Charlotte.

Oh, they'd work out some sort of custody agreement. On that, he would insist. And he was sure Blair wouldn't argue too strongly against it, not now. Agreeing to let him see Charlotte on a regular basis or even let him take their daughter back to the city for the occasional extended visit would be the lesser of two evils for her now

But he'd been in big business long enough to know that when someone gave up something too easily, it was usually because they were trying to get or retain something even more important to them. His best guess was that Blair was trying to retain distance.

She'd wasted no time moving away from the upper east side the minute their divorce was final, and as far as he could tell, she'd been perfectly happy settling in and making her mark on the small East Hampton town.

If fate hadn't somehow intervened to bring him here himself, he never would have known where she'd relocated to or that she had a child. His child.

Oh, yes, she'd wanted distance then, and she wanted it now. And if she pissed him off - or kept him pissed off - then he'd be less likely to stick around for any length of time, wouldn't he?

Which only made him want to stick around more. He was contrary like that sometimes, a fact Blair was well aware of. She should have known that if he caught on to her little plan, he'd make a point of doing pretty much the exact opposite of what she wanted, just to vex her.

Of course, there was a good chance she didn't even realise she had a little plan. That she was running heavily on instinct, he current thoughts and actions more subconscious then anything else.

But it still intrigued him, and if he hadn't wanted to stick around before just to be close to the child he hand't known existed, he certainly did now. He was even looking forward to it, considering the entertainment side benefits he'd recently discovered could be added to his stay.

Tossing back the covers, he moved to the edge of the bed and sat up. "Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I don't hate you."

He pushed to his feet and walked toward her stark naked. Where she'd fought so hard to protect her modesty and stay covered, he didn't bother and wasn't the least bit self-conscious about his nudity.

When she saw him coming, she took a jerky step back, away from him, but he wasn't really after her. Bending at the waist, he scooped up the tangled ball of his pants and underwear.

"I'm not happy about what you did," he clarified, climbing into his clothes with slow, deliberate movements, "and I can't say that I don't harbor a bit of anger and resentment over it. Or that there won't be moments when that anger and resentment flare hotter than anything else."

He learned down for his wrinkled shirt and shrugged it on, but didn't bother buttoning it, leaving his chest bare down the middle. "But we've covered that ground already. Keeping Charlotte from me - or the pregnancy to begin with - was wrong. That's time and experience I can't get back. Now that I know I have a daughter, however, things are going to change. I am going to be involved in her life - and therefore in yours."

She was standing only about three feet from him, clutching her dress to her breasts to cover as much of her front as she could. It was silly and useless, a bit like locking the barn door after the bull had already escaped, but Chuck found her false sense of modesty oddly endearing.

"You should probably come to terms with that," he told her matter-of-factly. "The sooner, the better,"

She simply stood there, staring at him. Her eyes sparkled like polished jewels, but whether with fear or rage or mere confusion, he couldn't quite tell.

While he had her off balance - which was a nice switch, frankly, since she'd pretty much had him off balance from the moment he had gotten to town - he tossed another can of gasoline on the bonfire that just seemed to continue blazing between them.

"Here's something else you should probably take into consideration," he said quietly, widening his stance and crossing his arms determinedly in front of him.

Blair didn't reply. Instead, she cocked her head, the tendons at the sides of her throat convulsing as she swallowed waiting nervously for him to elaborate.

"We didn't use a condom, which means that you may even now get pregnant with our second child."


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Oh, God.

Chuck's words slammed into Blair's chest like a bullet, knocking the air from her lungs and making her literally stagger on her feet.

What had she been thinking? Bad enough she'd fallen into bed with her ex faster then a star falls from the sky, but she'd completely forgotten about protection of any kind. It never occurred to her to insist he use a condom, and since she was a new mother, still breast feeding and with absolutely zero romantic prospects on the horizon, it hadn't bee necessary for her to be on birth control.

She tried to do the math in her head, to figure out when her last period had been and when she was due again, but panic kept her thoughts in a tailspin.

And what about the breast feeding? Wasn't it supposed to be harder to get pregnant while still nursing?

Dear God, please let that be true, because she couldn't even fathom the idea that she might actually be pregnant again, unexpectedly, unplanned and by her former husband. It was almost too horrifying to contemplate.

"I'm not," she said, as though saying it firmly and decisively would make it true.

Chuck raised a dark, sardonic brow. "How can you be so sure."

"I'm just not," she insisted, tearing frantically at her dress until she got her feet inside and could yank it up. Never mind that it was open all the way to her bottom in the back because she couldn't raise the zipper without help. She would walk home with it hanging loose, if she had to, rather then ask him for one iota of assistance.

"And what were you thinking?" she charged, stamping a foot as she slipped it into her heel. "How could you do that - let me do that - without taking precautions?" She cast him an angry, accusatory glare. "I've never known you to be so irresponsible."

He shrugged, looking exponentially more casual and unconcerned then she was feeling at that particular moment. "What can I say? I was swept away by your beauty and passion, and the exhilaration of being with you again after such a long absence."

Pausing in the act of showing on her other shoe, she tilted her head in his direction and gave a loud, unladylike snort. "Please," she scoffed.

"Is that so hard to believe?" he asked, still wearing the blank mask that gave her no clue of his true emotions.

Was he upset that they'd forgotten to use protection? Happy? Angry? Excited? Confused? Nauseous?

Because she was nauseous. And upset and angry and confused. There was no happiness or excitement anywhere on her radar.

If it turned out she really was pregnant...oh, God, please don't let her be pregnant again - not by Chuck, and not so soon after Charlotte's birth... She would of course love the baby. Unconditionally and without question. But the difference between loving an existing child and loving the notion of carrying an as yet imaginary child - especially under these circumstances - was like the difference between black and white, hot and cold, thirsty and drowning.

She loved Charlotte with all her heart and soul. She wouldn't trade her for anything, or even go back and undo the events that had led to her birth.

But she sure as hell wouldn't choose to get pregnant again. Not so soon after having one child, not without the benefit of marriage, and not with a man she'd recently divorced.

She was already linked too closely to Chuck, thanks to his discovery of Charlotte. But the thought of being even more closely connected to him through a second child would be a nightmare came to life.

He was almost rabid about staying close to her now that he know about Charlotte. Having him know from the very beginning that he was going to be a father a second time would turn him into near-stalker material. She would never get rid of him, not even for short amounts of time.

Oh, no, knowing Chuck he would do something ridicules like drag her back to the city where she would be trapped and miserable all over again.

Blair's head was shaking like a tambourine as she ran her gaze around the room, looking for anything she might have forgotten. Her purse, her watch, an earring...

"I think you underestimate your appeal," Chuck remarked, apparently missing the nuclear meltdown taking place inside her.

Purse in hand, she shot him another withering glare before spinning on her heel and marching toward the door.

"Blair."

Her free hand was out, reaching for the door knob, but his sharp voice stopped her in her tracks. She didn't turn to look at him but remained still, waiting for him to continue.

"I'll see you at the store first thing tomorrow, eight o'clock sharp. Be sure Charlotte is with you."

A shudder rolled through her, and she wasn't sure if it was aversion to having to deal with him again in the morning or relief that that was his only parting remark.

With a jerky nod, she pulled the door open and started to step in the hall.

"And I'll want to know as soon as you do," he went on, stooping her a second time.

Her heart lurched in her chest. "Know what?" she asked, forcing the words past her tight, dry throat.

"Whether or not we'll be presenting or daughter with a little brother of sister nine months from now."

XOXO

Chuck wasn't at the boutique when she and Jenny arrived with Charlotte in tow early the next morning. Blair wasn't surprised, since he'd said he would meet her there at eight, and frankly, she could use the short reprieve.

It might only be a few hours, but it was a few hours without having to see or deal with Chuck. After last night, she needed them. Desperately.

While she and Jenny bustled around readying the boutique for the day, she tried her best to put him and the myriad of issues between them out of her mind. Not for the first time...not even for the five hundred and first time...she wondered how she'd managed to get herself into such an incredible mess.

It felt as though her life had turned into some kind of daytime soap opera, and the worst part was that she knew those things were never-ending. They just went on forever, with more and more dramatic cliff-hangers cropping up to throw the main characters into a tizzy.

Well, she didn't need any more tizzies. And she sure as heck didn't need anymore drama. If she could have, she'd have canceled her own personal variation of As the world spins out of control.

Unfortunately, those few hours of blessed freedom sped by much too quickly. Before she knew it, the clock struck eight o'clock and her eyes were practically glued to the front door, waiting for Chuck to arrive.

But the clock struck ten after, twenty after, quarter to nine, and he was still nowhere in sight.

She should have been relieved, but instead, Blair found herself beginning to worry. It wasn't like Chuck to be late for anything, especially after making such a production of warning her of where he would be when - and where he fully expected her to be to meet him.

By nine-thirty, she'd decided on calling the hotel, and if he wasn't there, driving over herself to cheek his room, and call the police, if necessary. But before she could ask Jenny to cover for her, the bell above the door rang and Chuck strolled in, a charming smile on his face.

As hard as she tried not to notice, he looked magnificent. In place of his usual suit and tie, he wore tan slacks and a light blue collared shirt. The shirt's collar was open, cuffs rolled up to mid forearm.

Anyone else might see Chuck and think he was just a run of the mill guy, out and about on a beautiful summer day. But Blair knew better. If one looked closer, one would notice the gold Rolex, the seven hundred dollar Ferragamo loafers and the air of absolute power and confidence that surrounded him.

This was Chuck's casual appearance, but as wise men knew, appeared could be extremely deceptive.

He walked through the maze of clothing racks as though he owned the place, his smile turning more and more predatory the closer he came to the counter that separated them.

"Good morning," he greeted, sounding much too chipper for her peace of mind.

"Morning," she returned with much less enthusiasm. "You're late. I thought you said you'd be here at eight."

His shoulders rose and fell in a casual shrug. " I had some errands to run."

She raised a brow, but didn't ask because she wasn't sure he wanted to know.

"Do you have a minute?" He asked.

With a quick nod, she moved toward the back room and dipped her head through the door. "Jenny, could you work the register for a second? I need to speak with Chuck."

Jenny finished what she was doing and came out toward them. His sister cast him a cautious, almost disparaging glance, but held her tongue.

Blair hadn't told Jenny what what had happened with Chuck the night before. She'd given a brief recap of dinner, acting as though all they'd discussed was the investment, and that everything remained very professional. But she hadn't mentioned one word about what had transpired in his room later.

Knowing the whole story would only have increased Jenny's animosity toward Chuck. There was a time, not so long ago, when Blair had welcomed having someone to talk to about everything she'd been through both before and after the divorce.

But things had changed now. Not necessarily for the better, but in ways she couldn't avoid. Chuck knew Charlotte, was determined to be a part of his daughters life, and that meant he was going to be a part of hers. For better or worse, she had to find a way to make peace with her ex, if only to keep the next eighteen years of her life from being a living hell.

In order to do that, and also keep the peace, she had to avoid bad-mouthing Chuck. She probably shouldn't have done so in the first place, but she'd been hurt, so miserable, that she'd had to talk to someone, and Jenny's had been the perfect should to cry on.

Chuck came up behind her, laying a hand gently on her elbow. As soon as she was sure Jenny was settled behind the counter, she let him lead her out of the boutique to strand inform of the vacant shop next door.

"Do you have a key for this?" He asked, pointing to the doors lock.

"Yes. The landlord in a friend, she lets me use it occasionally for storage. Plus I have let in some potential renters when she wasn't available. "

"Yes, that's what she said." He replied, his warm hand stylists cupping her elbow more intimately than she would have liked. "I'm going to need it."

She blinked. "Why?"

"To let theses guys in," he answered, cooking his head in the direction of the mean in jeans and work shirts unloading toolboxes, sawhorses, lumber and various cutting implements from the row of pickup trucks parked at the curb.

"Who are they?" she asked in dismay.

"Your construction crew."

She met Chuck's gaze and must have looked confused as she felt because he quickly elaborated. "They're here to clean the place up and start putting in your shelving and countertops."

"What? Why?"

Her ex-husband's expression went from being amused at her utter shock to exasperated at her apparent denseness. "It's all part of the business plan, remember? We've got to have somewhere to use as a design headquarters."

Her gaze swung from Chuck to the workers, to Chuck, to the workers...She now knew exactly how wild animals felt when caught in the middle of the highway by bright, oncoming headlights.

One of the workers came to the door. Chuck made a motion with his hand, indicating that he needed a minute or two more, the man nodded, returning to his truck.

"Look, it's taken care of, okay?" Chuck told her. "I talked to the owner about the modifications we want to make. The space is rented in your name, and part of the agreement is to make any changes we see fit to accommodate the business. Brian is putting together the paperwork and will deliver the contracts today. So no arguments, and I need the key."

"But..." She was starting to sound like a broken record.

"Blair ," he said slowly, as though speaking to a small child. "It's taken care of. What more do you need to know."

There had been a time when that sort of power and cocky confidence would have impressed her. Now, though, it only made her nervous.

"I don't want to be indebted to you, Chuck," she told him softly, honestly. "I don't want to owe you anything, or know that my business is only successful, because you rode into town and saved the day."

"Why does it matter where the capital comes from Blair? The important thing is that you're moving forward."

Shaking her head, she crossed her arms beneath her breasts and took a step back. "You don't understand. It does matter, because you come in waving around your chequebook, and bossing around everyone in town, and suddenly it's not my business anymore. It's just another insignificant acquisition for Bass Industries' multimillion dollar holdings."

Widening his stance, he copied her defensive position of arms over chest. "Don't give me that. You asked Brian Blake to look for an investor you could work with. Preferable a silent one who would be willing to flush copious amounts of money into the line, but not have a say on how it was run or what you did with the cash. For the most part, that's exactly what I'm doing. So your problem isn't that I'm 'waving my chequebook around,' as you so eloquently put it. Your problem it that it's my chequebook."

"Of course that's my problem," she snapped, his earlier frustrations rubbing off on her. "We've been down this road before, Chuck. The money, the influence, expecting everyone and everything to fall into line simply because your name is Chuck Bass."

"I'm sorry." His arms slid from his chest and he started to reach for her, then seemed to think better of it and dropped his hands to his side. " I never meant for you to feel this way. I just want to help."

The same worker as before, apparently the man in charge of the rest of the crew, made an impatient face and tapped his watch. Time, as they said, was money, and he obviously wasn't making any standing around on the sidewalk. Of course, Blair was sure Chuck was paying them well, and most likely by the hour, regardless of whether they were actively working or not.

Chuck lifted a hand, giving him the same gesture as before, then he turned back to her. "I'm going to need the key, before these guys decide to sledgehammer their way in."

She licked her lips and swallowed, reluctant to do his bidding. She and Chuck had been on the verge of an honest to goodness adult conversation. One where she'd finally almost worked up the courage to tell him the truth behind why she'd gotten fed up and left in the first place. She'd tried so many times in the past to let him know how she was being treated, how she was made to feel like his success relied on the decisions she made, but she'd never been brave enough to blurt it out.

Part of her had believed that if he loved her enough, then he would have chosen her over the business. He would have realised her hints of unhappiness after Jack Bass had come to her, explaining that the business was going down hill because of Chuck's lack of focus.

If only she had spoken with him, been gutsy enough to ask him to make the decision between her and Bass Industries. Things might have turned out differently.

But that was water under the bridge and any chance they might have had of wiping the slate clean this morning had disappeared with the carpenter's interruption.

She included her head. "I'll get the key." She said turning on her heel and hurrying away.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

"I swear, that racket is enough to make me want to quit, Blair."

It hand't been easy to put up with the construction. She'd made dozens of apologies to customers and had even created 'apologies for the excessive noise' signs.

Thankfully, no dust and derbies had made it into the boutique, but having the crew around all day didn't make it easy for customers to enjoy browsing the racks.

"They'll be finished soon," she told the younger women, repeating the line the construction foreman had been giving her for the past week. She was familiar enough with contractors to know that 'soon' was a relative term, but given the fact that they really were making amazing progress, she thought the job would likely be done in just another week or two.

Without a doubt, Chuck wouldn't be leaving with them. He wanted to be close to Charlotte and indeed spent almost every evening with them. They ate dinner together. He helped to feed Charlotte, gave her baths and put her to bed. At his insistence, she'd shown him how to change a diaper, and amazingly, he now did that almost as often as she did. They played on blankets on the floor and took walks, and went to the park to feed the ducks, even though Charlotte was too young to truly enjoy it.

It felt so normal, and Blair had to admit...nice.

But she couldn't forget for a minute that there was strings attached to everything Chuck did. He wanted to get to know his daughter, which was understandable and seemed innocent enough on the surface.

Beyond that, though, she knew the entire situation was steeped in ulterior motives. Or at least the potential for ulterior motives.

Right now, Chuck was using the remodelling as an excuse to be close to his daughter, and something to occupy his time while Charlotte took frequent naps. But what would happen later?

What would happen once he decided he'd gotten to know Charlotte as well as he could here and wanted to take her back to New York.

What would happen when the novelty of helping her with her business wore off and small town living began to bore him?

And why did she bother wondering about such silly questions, when she already knew the answer?

The past couple of weeks, Chuck had reminded her more of the man she had fallen in love with and married then ever before. He'd been kind and generous, sweet and funny. He held doors for her, offered to help whenever he could, and put their daughter down for naps.

And he touched her. Nothing overt or overly sexual that a casual observer might notice, even considering how they'd spent his first night in town. Just light brushes of his fingers now and then - down her arm, over the back of her hand, along her cheek as he tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.

She tried not to read to much into the familiar gestures, but that didn't keep her pulse from thumping or her heart from hammering in her chest. Jenny had complained more then once that the boutique was too cold, but turning up the air conditioning was the only way Blair could think of to combat the erratic spikes in her body temperature that Chuck's constant presence and attention created.

Speak of the devil.

No sooner had the memory played through her head then Chuck pushed open the door, she nearly drooped the pen she'd been using.

There went her temperature again, causing her skin to flush and perspiration to break out along her brow and between her breasts. At least this time, she could blame it on all the hard work she was putting into her designs.

"When you get a minute," he said, "you should come over and see what you think. The crew is almost finished, and they want to know if there is anything else you'd like done before they go."

"Oh." That brought Blair's head up.

She'd been over to the other shop a couple of times during construction, but hand't wanted to get in anyone's way. Plus, Chuck had been so on top of things that her presences wasn't really necessary.

But now that the reservations were nearly complete, she was suddenly excited to see how it looked. To start picturing herself there, creating designs that Jenny would perfect.

The hammering and sanding met her ears even before they reached the new entryway between the two storefronts, but it had been going for so long now that it was nothing more then background noise.

Chuck opened the door and pushed back a sheet of thick plastic that had been hung as an extra precaution against sawdust and paint fumes. Holding it aside, he let her duck in ahead of him.

An awed sigh escaped her lips as she straightened and took in her nearly finished surroundings. The room was beautiful. More then she could have imagined, even after being in on the initial stages of planning.

Shelves and workbenches of various sizes lined the walls, creating more work space. The floor and ceiling had both been redone, and everything had been painted to match the boutique.

"Oh!" Blair cried, putting her fingers to her lips.

"Does it meet your approval?" Chuck asked, amusement evident in his tone.

She was sure he could tell by her shaking hands and watery eyes just how pleased she was, but still managed a breathless whisper. "It's wonderful."

With a tiny squeal of glee, she threw her arms around Chuck's neck and squeezed him tight. Almost immediately he circled her waist, hugging her back.

"Thank you," she whispered near his ear. "It's perfect."

When she pulled away, an odd expression crossed his face but before she could question it, the foreman appeared at her left shoulder. She was coming to think of him as the king of rude and untimely interruptions.

"I take it she likes her new work area ," he said with a smile, addressing Chuck.

Considering that her arms were still linked around her ex-husbands neck, that wasn't a difficult observation to make. Feeling suddenly self-conscious, Blair cleared her throat and steeped back, putting a more respectable amount of distance between them.

"She does seem to like it." Chuck replied

"It's more then I could have hoped for," she told the two men.

"Glad your happy. If there's anything else you need, or changes you want made, let me know."

She couldn't imagine anything she would want changed, but while the two men talked business, she wandered around the drastically altered space. Admiring, touching, mentally filling the shelves and working behind the desks. She loved the sculpted moulding and detail that precisely matched that of the boutique and marked it as hers.

Well, hers, and Chuck's or the banks, since she was sure there was going to be a hefty price to pay to someone at some point.

But even though she'd resisted being tied to her ex in such a way, she couldn't deny that he had given her an amazing gift.

Footsteps sounded behind her on the hardwood floor and she turned to see Chuck coming toward her once again.

"They'll be cleaned up and out of here in a few more hours. And the computer equipment will be delivered tomorrow, so you can start setting up then, if you like."

Blair clasped her hands together, just barely resisting the urge to rub them together like some sort of devilish cartoon character. She was so excited, she almost couldn't contain herself.

"I know you have a lot to do," Chuck said, cutting into her thoughts, "but before you get too wrapped up in all of this, there's something I've been meaning to discuss with you."

She took a deep breath and forced herself to relax. One day at a time, one step at a time. She'd come this far, she could make it the rest of the way.

"All right."

"There's some company business that I need to return home to deal with."

"Oh." Her eyes widened in surprise.

She'd gotten so used to Chuck being around that the idea of him leaving caught her unaware. Ironic, given how badly she'd wanted him to go back to the city when he'd first arrived. Now, though, it was hard to picture the boutique or her day to day life without him in it.

Shaking off that rather revealing but unwelcome train of thought, she nodded her acceptance. "Okay, that's fine. I understand you have important work, and you've certainly done more then enough while you've been here."

She stopped herself just short of thanking him, but only because she was afraid that would fall to close to...well, thanking him, when he wasn't really doing her any favours. Oh, he'd been wonderfully helpful, but not out of the goodness of his heart. Better to take what he'd so generously offered and get him out of town before he started calling in favours and demanding repayment in ways she was unwilling or unable to fulfil.

A slow smile started to spread across his features and her pulse jumped. That wasn't a happy smile, it was an I-know-something-you-don't-know smile.

"What?" She asked, drawing back slightly in wariness.

"You think I'm just going to pick up and leave, don't you?"

She had. Or perhaps she'd simply been hoping.

"It's alright, I understand," she said again. Sweeping an arm out to encompass their surroundings, she added, "This is all amazing, a wonderful start. Jenny and I can certainly take over from here."

That smile stretched further, flashing bright white teeth, and a feeling of dread washed over her.

"I'm sure you and Jenny will do a great job in getting the ball rolling. But that will have to wait until after we get back."

Blair blinked, replaying his words in her head. The feeling of dread started to dissipate, which was good...except that it seemed to be transforming into more of an all over numbness that kept her brain from functioning properly.

She cleared her throat. "We?"

Chuck inclined his head. " I want you and Charlotte to return to the city with me so I can introduce her to my world."


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

"No,"

Spinning on her heel, Blair stalked away, leaving Chuck in that rippling wake of that cold, perfunctory response.

Granted, he hadn't expected her to jump with joy at the prospect of going back with him, but he'd thought she would at least be reasonable about it.

With a sigh of resignation, he followed her through the plastic-draped doorway and into the boutique side of the building. She was already out of sight, likely in the back room, which meant shed been moving at a pretty good clip.

He lifted a hand to push through the door only to have it push back toward him, nearly cracking him in the face. Jenny's blue eyes widened in startlement when she saw him, but she didn't say a word, simply tipped up her chin and pranced off for the front counter.

No love lost there, he thought, stepping into the kitchen and finding Blair exactly where he expected - standing at one design tables, seemingly busy and focused on more designs. Even if she hadn't just walked away from him in a huff, he'd have known she was agitated by her jerky movements and ramrod stiffness of her spine.

"Blair," he began, letting the door swing closed behind him.

"No."

She spat the word, then punctuated it with the slam of her pen on the desk top. "No, Chuck. No," she repeated with equal fervour, turning on him, her white nickelled fingers still clinging to her pen.

"I'm not going back there with you. I am not walking back into the upper east side and dealing with those darling women, who will look down there aristocratic noses at me just like they did when we separated. Not to mention the judgement and condescending comments from your uncle. I mean how can he spin this to make me look bad. I had your child out of wedlock and kept her from you. He will criticise me for not telling you and then turn it all around and convince you that Charlotte's very existence will somehow be the downfall of 'Bass Industries'."

Blair let out a breath, seeming to lose a bit of her steam. In a lower, more subdued tone, she said, "Either that or he will deny Charlotte altogether. Declare she's not really a Bass, because of course he's already accused me of being a tramp anyway. Or decide not to claim her as a Bass because we weren't married when she was born."

She shook her head. "I won't do it, Chuck. I won't go through that again and I sure as hell won't put my baby girl through it."

Jaw clenching, he bit out, "She's my baby, too. Blair."

"Yes," she acquiesced with a short nod of her head, "which is why you should want to protect her, too. From everything, and everyone."

Releasing the pen, she put on hand flat to the desk, the other on her hip and squared off, a mother bear ready and willing to protect her young, no matter what. "Charlotte is perfect. I won't let anyone make her feel any less then perfect, less then wonderful. Ever. Not even her own family."

Chuck put his hands to his hips and cocked his head. "I had no idea you hated Jack so much," he murmured quietly.

"He was horrible to me," Blair retorted, rolling her eyes. "He made my life miserable while we were married."

For a minute, he didn't say anything, trying to gage that truth of her words.

He'd his uncle really been that awful to her, or was Blair exaggerating? He knew women didn't always get along with their husbands families. Heaven knew his uncle Jack wasn't exactly he warmest person in the whole world, even with his own nephew, but had he really been so cruel to Blair.

"I'm sorry you feel that way," he said carefully, "but I have to go back. Not long - a few days, maybe a week. And I'd like to take Charlotte with me. You know how much Lilly will dote over her and Serena."

At that, Blair opened her mouth and her knew another argument was coming. "You can't really stop me from taking her along," he told her flatly. "She's my daughter and you've kept her from me - and from my family - all this time. I think I deserve to take her home with me for a while."

Cocking his head, he fixed her with an intense, no-nonsense stare. " And we both know I don't need your permission."

"Are you threatening to take her from me?" She asked in a low voice.

"Do I need to?" He responded just as softly.

Though her mouth flattened in obvious anger, he could see the pulse beating frantically at her throat and her green eyes glittering with emotion.

"It's just for a few days," he assured her again, feeling the odd need to wipe the fear and brimming tears from those eyes. "A week at the most. And you're more than welcome to come along, keep an eye on both of us. Why do you think I invited you in the first place?"

She licked her lips, swallowing hard. "You're going to make me do this, aren't you?" she asked in a wavering but resolved voice.

"I'm going to do this, with or without you. What part you play in the situation and how close an eye you keep on Charlotte is entirely up to you."

She gave him a look that clearly said she didn't think the choice he was giving her was any choice at all, but dammed if he'd back down or go home, even for a short stay, without his daughter. He'd only just discovered he was a father; he wasn't going to walk away that easily.

Nor was he willing to let Charlotte out of his sight for that long. It might only be a handful of days by the calendar, but he'd gotten so used to seeing his daughter each and every day, to spending true quality time with him, that even twenty-four hours would feel like a lifetime at this point.

The same could be said of being away from Blair, he supposed, but then, his attraction to her had never been in question.

No, his thoughts now had to be for his daughter. And though he would never intentionally cause his ex-wife this much anxiety or upset, he couldn't honestly be sure that she wouldn't pick up Charlotte and run with her the minute he drove out of town.

There was also the small issue of her current physical condition. Like it or not, there was a chance she was pregnant again, and until he knew for sure one way or the other, he didn't intend to let her get away or keep another child a secret from him.

Which meant that if he couldn't stay and keep an eye on her and Charlotte every minute, then he would have to take Charlotte with him to New York. Blair could go along or not, but that one thing he could count on was that if Charlotte was with him, she wouldn't be hieing off to parts unknown.

Mouth set in a mulish slant, she mumbled, "This is extortion, you know."

He raised a brow and resisted the urge to chuckle. "I'd hardly call it that."

"What would you call it, then?"

"Fatherhood," he replied. "I'm simply exerting my parental rights. You remember what those are, don't you? They're what you denied me for the past year while you kept Charlotte to yourself."

He hadn't meant to let his bitterness over the past slip out, but he could tell by her expression that she'd heard it loud and clear.

"I'm not letting you take Charlotte anywhere without me." She said stubbornly.

Her implication being that if he insisted on taking Charlotte home, she would be going along, however reluctantly.

"If you can be ready by tomorrow, we'll leave around noon."

XOXO

The last thing Blair wanted to do was leave the nice, tidy life she'd built for herself to return to the lion's den that was the upper east side. It might be only temporary, but whether it was five days or only one, every minute was bound to feel like an eternity.

Which was why she didn't rush when it came to packing for herself and Charlotte. She took her time discussing her absence with Jenny and her other employees. Then she actually solicited Chuck's help in gathering everything they would need to take Charlotte on even a short trip. She was pretty sure he had no idea just how involved travelling with a baby could be.

Blair kept thinking up new things to add to the list, hiding her amusement when Chuck would begin to grumble and reminding him that returning to the city was his idea .

They could skip all of the fuss and muss, if he'd only agree to let her - and Charlotte - stay put.

Each time the topic came up, however, any mention of cancelling the trip or of his going without without them simply caused his jaw to go taut, and he would silently return to collecting Charlotte's things or securing the car seat in the back of the limo.

By one the next day - because try as she might, she hadn't been able to postpone any longer - they were standing on the curb, ready to leave. Charlotte was in the cars seat, kicking her legs and gumming her her very own set of plastic,pink keys, while Chuck waited near the door. "Ready to go?" He asked Blair in an even tone.

Since her throat was tight with emotion, she could only nod before climbing into the limo. Once her legs were tucked safely inside, he followed and closed the door behind them.

"I know you don't want to do this," he said. "But it's going to be all right."

She held his gaze for a moment, feeling that lump in her throat - which had finally started to recede - swell up again. Then she nodded before turning to fuss over the baby.

But what she was really thinking was, Famous las words. Because she didn't think there was any way that this little visit to New York could possible be anything less than a complete disaster.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

Unfortunately, the drive into the city flew by much more quickly than Blair would have liked. Before she knew it, they were pulling up out front of The Empire hotel.

Every inch of blacktop that passed beneath the limo tires made her heart beat faster and her stomach sink lower until she started to worry she might actually be sick.

Don't be sick, don't be sick, don't be sick, she told herself, taking deep, even breaths and praying the mantra would work.

The limo pulled to a stop at the curb, within moments a young man was opening her door, offering a hand to help her out, then rushing to retrieve the luggage from the back. Chuck had obviously called ahead to let them know of his return.

She didn't remember seeing this particular young man before, but then, The Empire tended to go through staff faster then Nate Archibald went through girls.

Following her from the car, Chuck tossed a look at the kid in the short red jacket that marked him as an Empire employee. "We aren't traveling light." Chuck told him, one corner of his mouth twisting upward. "But it all goes to my suite."

Blair opened her mouth to correct him, Chuck had brought a single overnight case with him, while all the rest of the bags, not to mention a plethora of moulded pink plastic, belonged to her and Charlotte. And they definitely did not belong in Chuck's suite.

But he apparently knew what she was about to say, because he pressed his index finger to her mouth, effectively cutting off her disagreement.

"They go to my suite," he said again, so that only she could hear. "You and Charlotte will be staying there with me while we're here. No arguments."

Chuck might be high-handed and controlling, but just because he said 'no arguments' didn't mean she wasn't going to give him one. She opened her mouth again to do just that, be he covered her lips with a quick, hard kiss.

"No arguments," he repeated a shade more sternly. "It will be better for everyone involved. Trust me on this, okay?"

She so didn't want to. There was something deeply ingrained in her since their divorce that made her not want to trust him or listen to him or even believe a word he said.

But the fact was, she did trust him. Sharing a suite with him would be awkward and uncomfortable, but considering where this particularly suite of rooms was located it might actually be safer than staying in a room of her own. In addition to being quite spacious, Chuck's suite also happened to be the one they'd lived in together while they were married, so at least she would be in a familiar setting.

"Fine," she muttered, slightly distracted by the lingering remnants of his kiss. He tasted of mint, and she could have sworn it was of the mentholated variety, because her lips were still tingling from the contact, however brief.

"Good," he replied, looking much too pleased with himself for her peace of mind. Then he scooped up Charlotte out of her seat, tucking her against his chest. "Now let's go inside and introduce our daughter to the rest of her family."

At that, Blair's stomach started to pitch and roll again, but Chuck reached for her hand and the warmth of his fingers clasping hers was as calming as a glass of merlot. Well, almost. She was still jittery and her breathing was shallow as they stepped through the glass doors.

Just inside the main entrance, the lobby sparkled with glass and crystal. The parquet floor had been waxed to a high gloss. The chandelier hanging overhead glittered with polish and a thousand bits of glass shaped like teardrops reflecting the light of another thousand brightly lit bulbs.

In the centre of the floor, an enormous display of flowers rested on a sizeable marble table. And behind that was the reception desk and grand staircase.

It all looked exactly as it had the day Blair had left. She'd been gone a year. A year in which just about everything in her life had changed substantially. But she had little hope that anything - or anyone - else under the Empire's million dollar roof had.

A moment after they arrived in the suite, Jack Bass emerged from behind the bar. "Charles," he greeted - and only Chuck.

At the sound of Jack Bass' voice Blair's heart lurched and she murmured a quick prayer asking for the strength and patience to get through this agonising visit.

"Uncle Jack," Chuck returned, shacking his hand. Bouncing Charlotte slightly in his arms, he added , "Meet you niece, Charlotte Eleanor Bass,"

Jack's pinched mouth twisted into what Blair suspected was meant to be a smile. "Lovely," he intoned, not even bothering to reach out and touch the baby. He simply per used her from head to toe.

Blair stiffened, offended on her child's behalf. But then Jack's attention shifted to her and she new she would soon be offended on her own behalf.

"I don't know what you were thinking," Chuck' uncle chastised. "Keeping my nephews daughter from him all this time. You should have said something the moment you discovered you were pregnant. You had no right to keep a Bass heir to yourself."

And it begins, Blair thought, with no sense of surprise whatsoever. She also wasn't offended, though she knew she had every right. Probably because Jack's reaction to her reappearance was exactly what she'd expected.

"Uncle Jack," Chuck snapped in a tone Blair had rarely, if ever, heard from him.

Blair turned her head to study him, stunned by the look of anger on his face.

"We discussed this when I called," he continued. "The circumstances surrounding Charlotte's birth are between Blair and myself. I won't have you insulting her while we're here. Is that understood?"

Blair watched with wide eyes while Jack's lips flattened into a thin, unhappy line.

"Very we'll," he replied. After flicking a disdainful glance at Blair he turned leaving the suite.

Releasing a pent-up-breath, Blair muttered, "That went well."

She meant it to be sarcastic, but Chuck simply smiled.

"I told you so." Hiking a drowsy Charlotte higher on his shoulder, he said, "I think Charlotte could use a bit of a nap."

Reaching out, she brushed a hand over her daughter's brown soft baby hair. "She shouldn't be tired, she slept on the ride over."

Chuck flashed her a grin. "It didn't take."

She chuckled, because she couldn't seem to help herself. This was the Chuck she remembered from when they were younger. Funny, kind, thoughtful...and so handsome, he took her breath away.

How could being this close to Chuck again feel so good, so right, when being in this ci again felt so very wrong?

XOXO

Chuck watched Blair move around his suite, getting ready for dinner. Charlotte was sleeping in the sitting room, in a crib that had been set up at his requests before their arrival.

But it was his ex-wife's presence that had his gut clenching and his mind spinning. She looked right here. If felt right to have her here again.

He wasn't sure he meant here as in his suite at The Empire Hotel, though. It wasn't about having her back in the city, or even in his suite. It was about having her with him, in his bedroom, no matter where that room happened to be located.

He'd missed that. Missed seeing her things spread out on top of the bureau and cluttering the bathroom vanity. Having her clothes hanging with his in the closet, the sent of her perfume lightly permeating his work shirts and sheets on the bed.

He'd missed simply watching her, like this, as she moved around the room getting dressed, fixing her hair, doing her makeup or choosing which pieces of jewellery to wear.

Granted, she didn't have as many of those things with her this time as she had when they'd been man and wife, but that didn't keep her from falling into the same old habits or her movements from being achingly familiar. She was even wearing her favourite perfume - probably because she'd left a bottle on the dresser when she'd moved out and he hadn't been able to bring himself to get rid of it.

Now, he was glad. He'd given it to her for their anniversary, after all. So very long ago, it seemed. But the fact that she was wearing it again, that she was he with him, and apparently still trusted him... It made him wonder if maybe they could work out their differences and give each other another chance.

"How do I look?" She asked suddenly, breaking into his thoughts.

"Beautiful," he replied, without having to think about it, without even having to look. Though he did - long and hard. Looking at her was always a pleasure.

She was wearing a simple yellow dress, strappy heels, with her hair pinned back so that her natural brown curls were even more prominent. His blood stirred in his veins, arousal pouring through him, and he licked his lips, wishing he could lick her - like a sweet, lemon flavoured Popsicle.

Her eyes turned smoky and she offered him a small, sultry smile before brushing her hands down the sides of her skirt.

"Are you sure? You know your mother and Serena will be there. I didn't really know pack for formal dinners." She paused to take a breath, then blew it out and wiped her hands on her skirt again in that same nervous gesture.

"You look beautiful," he repeated, striding across the thickly carpeted floor to grasp her shoulders. "And we're not here to impress anyone. Not even my mother and sister," he added with a grin.

When her mouth twitched with the beginnings of a smile and at least some anxiety seemed to drain away from her features, he leaned in and kissed here. He kept it light, even though that was far from what he really wanted.

Just the firm press of lips to lips instead of a ravaging of tongues. Just the brush of his fingertips over the warm skin of her bare shoulders instead of his hands delving inside her bodice and beneath the hem of her skirt.

He lingered for a few precious, breathless moments, then released her, stepping back before the full proof of his desire for her became obvious. Her freshly applied lipstick was smudged and he reached out to brush a spot with the edge of his thumb.

"Maybe we should skip dinner and go straight to dessert," he suggested in a low, gravelled voice.

"I don't think Lilly would like that very much."

He was pleased to hear the same huskiness in her voice as in his own. It meant he wasn't alone in his passion causing his pulse to hammer and hum.

"I don't think I give a damn," he muttered with no small amount of feeling behind the words.

"As bad and idea as that probably is, I sincerely wish we could. Anything would be better than having to face your Uncle again."

The corner of Chuck's mouth quirked down in a frown. Was she implying that staying in the room to make love with him would be only slightly less miserable than an evening spent with the 'Van-der-Bass-Humphry' family? He wasn't sure he liked being considered the lesser of tow evils.

Before he had a chance to reply, however, a tapping sounded on the suite's outer door.

"That will be the nanny," he said, just managing to mask a sigh of disappointment.

" You hired a nanny?" Blair asked, sounding both surprised and disapproving.

"Not really," he replied. "One of the housekeepers is going to sit with her for a couple of hours. That's all right, isn't it?"

Her brows crossed. "I don't know. Is she good with infants?"

"I don't know," he said, repeating her phrase. "Let's go meet her and give her the third degree."

Wrapping his hand around her elbow, he pulled her with him toward the bedroom door.

"I don't want to give her the third degree," Blair murmured softly as they crossed the sitting room where Charlotte was sleeping. " I just want to know that's she's qualified to sit with my child."

"We'll be right downstairs, so you can come up and check on her any time you like," he assured her, keeping his voice equally low. "Tonight can be her test run. If you like her and she does a good job, she can stay with Charlotte whenever you need her while you're here. If not, we'll hire a real nanny. One you feel a hundred percent confident in."

"You're placating me, aren't you?" She asked, an edge of annoyance entering her tone.

With his hand on the knob of the sitting room door, he turned to her and smiled. "Absolutely. While you're here, whatever you need, whatever you want, I intend to see that you get it."

Her eyes widened and he knew she was about to argue. So he bent down and captured her mouth, kissing her into warm and pliant submission.

When he pulled away, his own body was buzzing with warmth, but he was far from pliant. Quite stiff and unyielding would have been more accurate.

"Indulge me," he said, brushing a stray curl behind her ear while the taste of her lingered on his lips and prodded him to kiss her again. "Please."


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

As always, dinner with Chuck's family was exhausting. Delicious, but exhausting.

The questions had not been as bad as she had thought. Even with everyone knowing the circumstances surrounding Blair's return to the upper east side and Jacks obvious disdainful glances, Chuck's adoptive mother and her husband had treated her exactly the same as they had in the past. No sidelong glances or sharply pointed questions meant to put her on the spot or make her feel insecure, just friendly smiles and harmless banter.

Lilly had been disappointed that Charlotte wasn't joining them but had been busily entertained with Serena and Dan's children.

That alone had helped to assuage of Blair's raw and rampaging nerves. To Blair's relief Jack had played fair through the soup and salad course, keeping conversation light and impersonal. There were a couple of rocky moments while they enjoyed their entrees, but by the time dessert was being servers, Jack drooped the semi polite facade and began taking potshots at Blair as often as he thought he could get away with it. Some of them were direct, others more passive aggressively delivered.

But this time, Chuck actually stuck up for her - something he'd never done before, not with his uncle. Possibly because in the past, Jack's attacks had been much more subtle, and often reserved for moments when the two of them were alone so that no one else would witness his true evil nature.

Tonight Chuck hadn't let his uncle's not so sublet assaults slide by. He'd caught and responded to every one, always in Blair's defence. And once dessert was finished, when Jack seemed to be working himself toward a full-blown attack, he'd announced that it had been a long day, wished his family a good night, and taken Blair's hand to lead her out of the restaurant.

She was almost giddy with relief and unaccustomed empowerment...and was still clutching his hand like a life preserver as they headed toward the elevator.

Reaching the door to his suite, they were both smiling, and she was slightly out of breath. He put a finger to his lips, signalling for her to be quite before he opened the door.

The fact that he had to remind her to be silent made her realise how close to giggling she . Like a twelve year old.

Biting back the strangled sound, she kept hold of Chuck's hand and followed him into the darkened sitting room. The maid slash nanny they'd left with Charlotte was sitting across the room from the crib, reading a magazine beneath the muted yellow glare of a single low lit lamp. Wen she saw them, she closed the magazine and rose quickly to her feet.

"How was she?" Chuck whispered.

"Just fine," the young women answered with a small smile "She slept the entire time."

Good news for a babysitter. Not such good news for parents who were looking forward to a full nights sleep.

"That means she'll be up in the middle of the night," Blair whispered to no one in particular. And then to Chuck, she said, "Prepare yourself for finally experiencing the true rigours of fatherhood."

He flashed her a grin, his eyes sparkling with a blaze of heat that had nothing to do with parental exhilaration. "I'm looking forward to it."

After slipping the young maid a couple of folded bills, Chuck saw her out, then joined Blair at the side of Charlotte's crib. His hand came up to rest on the small of her back, and she had to swallow a lump of emotion at the picture they must have made. Mother and father standing at the edge of their infant daughters crib, watching her sleep.

This was what she'd always imagined motherhood and family would be like. It's what she'd wanted when shed married Chuck and they'd first started trying to get pregnant.

Funny how life never quite turned out the way you planned.

But this was nice, too. Maybe not ideal, maybe not the epitome of her adolescent dreams, but it still warmed her and made her heart swell inside her chest.

"I hope she's not coming down with something," she murmured, putting the back of her hand to Charlotte's tiny forehead. He didn't feel feverish, but one could never tell. "She doesn't usually sleep this long."

"She's had a busy day," Chuck offered just as softly. "You'd be tired, too, if this were your first big trip to the big city."

She chuckled, the had to cover her mouth to keep from waking the baby. With a grin of his own, Chuck grabbed her arm and tugged her toward the bedroom door.

Once they were safely inside, he twirled her around and pushed her up against the hard, flat panel, covering her mouth with his own. His arms on either side of her head boxed her in, his body pressing her flat and sending a flare of heat everywhere he touched.

For long minutes, he kissed her, their breaths mingling, his tongue thrusting, parrying, drawing her into his passionate duel. She lost her breath, her vision, her sanity, her entire world shrinking to the single pinprick of reality that was Chuck's solid embrace.

When he lightened his hold enough to let her grasp for air, she blinked like a newborn foal and let her head fall back against the door while he continued to nibble at her tingling lips.

"This isn't what I had in mind when you said we'd be sharing your suite," she managed - barely - after filling her lungs with a gasp of much needed oxygen.

"Funny. It's exactly what I pictured." He murmured the words against her skin, moving to suckle the lobe of her ear.

Somehow she didn't doubt that. But letting his family think they were sharing a room and actually sharing a room - a bed - were two completely different things.

"I was going to sleep on the chaise in the other room. Or slip into another room when no one was watching. This..."

She moaned as her tongue darted out to lick a line of electricity from her collarbone to the hallow behind her ear. The sensation shot through her like a shock wave, turning her knees to jelly.

"Not smart. Not smart at all," she wheezed, unsure of whether the words were actually coming out of her mouth or simply echoing through her rapidly liquefying brain.

Shifting to wrap his arms around her and lift her against his body - one hand at her back, the other cradling her bottom - he turned and strode directly to the bed.

"I think it's positively brilliant," he replied, and then dropped her to the mattress like a sack of potatoes.

She certainly didn't feel like a sack of potatoes, though. Not when he followed her down, covering her from chest to ankle with his hot, heavy bulk.

This time, when he kissed her, she didn't think to protest where all of this might be leading. Maybe because she knew where it was leading. They both did.

Or maybe because his mouth on hers, his hands on her body, drove every other rational trout straight out of her head.

With deft fingers, he untied the knot of her dress's bodice behind her neck, lowering the gauzy material to reveal her bra less breasts. He cupped them together, kneading, brushing the tight nipples with his thumbs until she moaned and wiggled beneath him.

He returned her moan with one of his own, then let his hands slide around her waist to the rear zipper. She rose slightly and waited for the gently vibration to stop, for him to tug the full skirt pt her hips and thighs.

Lifting himself up, he pulled the dress completely off, then divested her of her sandals, as lay there in only a pair of thin, silken panties.

Judging by Chuck's expression, he approved. For long minutes, he stayed propped on one strong arm staring down at her with eyes that had gone dark and primal. A shiver stole over her at that look, at the way it made her feel.

Not helpless or vulnerable by any means. Instead, she felt powerful. That she could incite that level of heat and lust in him continued to amaze her.

It had been that way in the beginning, and for most of there marriage, but she wouldn't have expected such intense desire to still be there after all they'd been through. That it was felt a bit like a miracle, even through she had no idea how the passion they shared in the bedroom could possible translate to their future everyday lives.

His fingers delving beneath the elastic waist of her underwear dragged her up from the quagmire of her inner thoughts, and she was more then willing to grab hold of the life rope he offered.

She let him snake the panties down her legs, laying her bare, and then wrapped her arms around his neck to pull him down for a deep, soulful kiss. With a groan, Chuck ground the bulge of his still trapped erection against her hip.

Shifting beneath him, she welcomed him into the cradle of her thighs, crossing her legs behind his waist. He groaned again - or maybe it was a growl - and pressed even closer.

There was something compelling and meaningful and not to be taken for granted. And he realised suddenly that that's exactly what he'd done - he'd taken his relationship with Blair for granted.

He'd married her, and brought her home, and simply assumed she would always be there. How could she not be happy in the life she had always lived. He'd never been one to delve too deeply into his or anyone else's feelings, but these past few weeks had him thinking differently. Feeling things he'd never felt before and wondering things he'd never thought to wonder.

Maybe money wasn't enough. But wasn't that a good thing? Didn't it mean that she hadn't loved him just for his money alone? For what he had or what he could give her?

He wasn't sure what to think of that, what he did know was that some bond still existed between them.

It wasn't just sex - although that alone was outstanding enough to give him pause. But whatever it was, still buzzing and humming whenever they were together, it warranted a few hours of serious consideration.

Was there a chance they could reconcile? Try again, start over, build something better and stronger then before?

But even if they could, should they?

It was too much to contemplate rationally at the moment, given that his mind was preoccupied with more immediate and infinitely more enjoyable pursuits. But he did need to think about it. Decide if what he thought he was feeling was real.

Because what he thought he was feeling was love. Love. Longing. Devotion. And desire to once again make things with Blair permanent.

He groaned as her tongue swirled inside her mouth and her ankles tightened at the small of his back. The heat of her naked body burned through his clothes and suddenly he wanted them gone.

With her still clinging to him like plastic wrap, he reached between them to tug at the buttons of his shirt, his belt, the front of his slacks. She shifted when necessary, giving him the space to shrug out of his clothes with jerky movements, but never actually letting go.

Once he was as naked as she, he edged her higher on the bed, careful not to bump her into the headboard while he held her to him with one arm and rearranged the overstuffed pillows with the other. He propped a couple under her rear, lifting her so that she looked down on him and the short strands of chocolate brown hair fell around his face, as well as her own.

Grasping her chin, he held her in place while he nibbled her lips, tracing patterns over her waist and back with his fingertips. Her skin was like the smooth perfection of an alabaster statue, all elegant dips and curves. Only where statues were cold and lifeless, Blair was anything but. She was passionate and beautiful, and the only women he'd ever made love to.

Before there relationship, he hadn't bothered with making love. It had been easier and less complicated to limit any intimacies to a quick tryst in a hotel room.

After the divorce...well, the truth was that he hadn't been with another women since Blair left. He'd thrown himself into his work and company. Frankly, no one else had even remotely caught his interest in the past year. He wondered now if anyone else ever would.

Crossing his arms behind her back, he grasped her to him, flattening her full , rounded breasts to his chest. She ran her hands through his hair, raking her nails over his scalp and the nape of his neck, something he'd always loved. It sent shivers of arousal down his spine and blood pulsing even more heavily between his legs.

Feeling the twitch of his erection, Blair shifted on his lap, arranging herself to hover just above him. She wrapped her slim fingers around his hard length and stroked him lightly for a moment before guiding him ever so slowly into her damp, welcoming warmth.

Chuck hissed a breath through clenched teeth, reciting stock values in his head to keep the evening from being over much too soon. The feel of her surrounding him, of being buried inside her, was one of the most astonishing sensations he'd ever experienced. No matter how many times it happened. Amazing and life altering. Impossibly better than the time before, and certain never to be as mind blowing again.

She fit him like a glove, snug and hot, clutching at him in a way that nearly sent the top of his head spinning off. Hands on her bare buttocks, he tugged her closer - not that there was more than the thinnest sliver of space between them to begin with. But if he could have absorbed her into him, he would have.

Her breath whooshed out of her as she hit his chest with a thump, but he didn't give her a chance to refill her lungs with fresh air. Instead, he took her mouth while he lifted her up...and down. Up...and down. Short, jerky movements at first that grew faster and more frantic as their passions built and their mingled breathing became ragged.

Chuck's heat pounded beneath his rib cage, every cell in his body tightened, straining, striving for release. He fought it, wanting the feeling to last. Wanting this time with Blair to last.

But holding back his orgasm was like trying to hold back a monsoon. His only hope was to hang on long enough and make sure she was with him when it happened.

Reaching between them, he trailed the flat of his hand over her abdomen and slipped two fingers into her folds in search of the secret bundle of nerves that would send her over the edge. She gasped as soon as he touched her there and he felt her inner muscles clench around him.

He cursed under his breath, working to school his breathing and praying for just a little more staying power. Just a little more.

Using the pads of his fingers, he circled the swollen bud. Blair gave a long, plaintive moan, her spine bowing as she arched above him.

"That's it baby," he panted, cocking his hips to meet her every downward thrust. " Let yourself go. Come with me."

Her body was growing taut, her movements and breathing becoming more and more frenetic as her climax approached.

Chuck continued to tease, continued to drive her higher and higher. Pinching, flicking, and letting nails rake across her most sensitive spot while he rocked her from below.

And then she was over, crying out as wave after wave of pleasure ripped through her, causing her to shudder from head to toe.

Chuck wasn't far behind. As soon as he felt the start of her climax, he released the stranglehold on his own self control and followed her into bliss.


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

Blair awoke to early morning sunlight streaming through the half drawn draperies and across the bed. A wide smile split her face as she stretched like a cat, feeling better than she had in a very long time.

Tilting her head, she checked the clock, then sat up quickly. Ten o'clock! How could she possible have slept that long?

Granted, she'd had a rather rigorous evening. She and Chuck had made love three times during the long night, and Charlotte had had them both out of bed a couple of times in between. But she still should have been up long before now, especially since Charlotte had to be awake and fusing.

Rolling to the edge of the mattress, she started to sit up only to have her hand bump something near the head of the bed. It crinkled slightly, and when she looked, she found a slip of personalised stationary, lying half under Chuck's pillow.

'Had to go to the office,' it said in Chuck's tall, distinctive scrawl. 'Charlotte is with the nanny. Home for dinner.' And it was signed, 'Love, C.

Short and to the point, which was typical of Chuck. But using the L-word in a frivolous manner was not. Did he mean it? Or had it simply slipped out by habit, given their return to familiar material intimacies?

Blair's heart pinched inside her chest. She wasn't sure how to feel about either possibility, so she decided not to think about it too much. At least not at the moment.

Slipping out of bed, she quickly dressed in a pair of slacks and a lit sweeter, then made her way out of the bedroom. Se found Charlotte in the centre of a large blanket that had been spread on the floor. Toys were spread all around, and the same young maid from last night sat at one corner, making faces and playing with the laughing child. She was definitely working overtime, Blair thought, making a mental note to ask Chuck if she was being properly compensated.

"Ms. Bass," the women murmured as soon as she spotted Blair. Pushing to her feet, she clasped her hand nervously behind her back.

"It's Waldorf, actually," Blair replied automatically. Moving toward the blanket, she knelt beside Charlotte and scooped her up, cradling her against her chest.

She giggled, kicked her little legs and grabbed for her mothers hair. Blair chuckled in return, kissing one of her warm, chubby cheeks.

"Thank you for watching her again," she said, climbing back to her feet and taking a seat on one of the nearby sofas.

"My pleasure, ma'am. Mr Bass said it was all right to giver her a bottle and some baby cereal, so she's been fed and burped. Changed, too."

Blair nodded, sending the young women a gentle smile. Her first inclination was to dismiss the maid and take over Charlotte's care herself. She wasn't used to having staff on hand anymore to see to her every need or whim. And she was used to taking care of Charlotte almost single- handedly.

But the maid looked so eager to please and Blair knew from personal experience how demanding Chuck could be.

Standing, she gave Charlotte another kiss, this one in the centre of her forehead, then returned her to the blanket.

"Would you mind watching her for a little bit longer?" She asked straightening. "I'd like to get some breakfast."

The young maid looked both pleased and unaccountably relieved. She quickly moved back to the blanket and took up her post at Charlotte's side.

"Of course ma'am. Take your time."

"Thank you."

After taking her time with two slices of toast and scrambled eggs, Blair strolled back up to the suite. The nanny was still there, and Charlotte was still playing and cooing, enjoying herself as much as when she'd left.

She laughed herself, just watching her baby. There were few things in the world as delightful as a baby's heartfelt giggle, and she never grew tired of hearing her own child expressing her happiness over some silly thing like a shaken rattle or a game of peekaboo.

Joining them on the blanket, she spent the next twenty of thirty minutes entertaining Charlotte and chatting with the maid, who turned out to be a college student trying to earn extra money for tuition over her summer break.

"Week isn't this a sweet little tableau." Jack's crisp tone and deceptively reproving words cut the maid off mid sentence and sent a flush of guilt through the young women. She immediately jumped up fidgeting nervously.

"You may go," Jack told her without preamble.

The maid gave a quick nod, mumbled, "Yes, ma'am," and hurried out of the room.

Blair was just as uncomfortable with Jack's appearance, but refused to let is show. She certainly wasn't going to rush to her feet like some loyal subject in front of the king.

Remaining where she was, she continued playing with Charlotte, fighting the morbid impulse to glance in the mans direction.

"You didn't have to scare her off, Jack," she said flatly, finally looking up at him. "She's a nice girl. We were having an interesting conversation."

If possible' Jack's features turned even more pinched and disapproving. "I would think you would understand that it's unseemly to make friends with the help."

Blair chuckled at that, a short burst of unexpected sound that caused Jack's brows to pucker. "I'm afraid I don't adhere to your antiquated rules."

"Do you really think this is going to work out?" Jack continued snidely. "That you can hid Chuck's daughter from him for nearly a year, then simply bat your eyes and waltz back to the city, trapping Chuck all over again."

Keeping one hand on Charlotte's belly and rubbing her gently through the soft onesie, Blair finally turned her head to meet Jack's stern, steel gaze. "I'm not trying to trap Chuck. I never was. I just wanted to love him and be happy. But you couldn't let that happen, could you?"

Shifting Charlotte onto her hip, she hugged her close and continued with so much of what she'd been waiting to say for years. "God forbid Chuck falls in love with a women and settles down with his family. God forbid her make a good impression on the board and realise that he can run the company by himself. Maybe he might finally realise what a weaselly, low life you are."

The words poured out of her like a rainstorm, but even though a silver of fear remained at the very pit of her belly, she also felt relieved...and stronger than she would have expected.

Why hand't she found the courage to tell Jack off long before now? She might have saved her marriage. Saved herself countless tears. Saved them all months and months of misery.

Jack, of course, didn't take Blair's first act of independence at all well. He turned an unseemly shade of red while his eyes narrowed and his jaw locked like a piranha's

"How dare you?" He seethed, his face turned even more melted.

But her anger didn't faze Blair. Not anymore.

"I should have dared a long time ago. I should have stood up to you and refused to let you intimidate me just because your Chuck's family. And I should have told Chuck how you were treating me from the very beginning instead of trying to keep the peace and avoid tarnishing his opinion of you."

She shook her head, sad but determined. " I was young and stupid then, but I've grown up a lot in the past year. And I have a chid now, a family of my own and I do not intend to let you push her around or let her witness you pushing me or her father around. I'm sorry, Jack, but if you want to be part of your nephews life, you're going to have to except that Charlotte and I will be here and start treating us all with a little respect."

Blair could tell from the pinch of Jack's lips that he was about as far from that happening as from flapping his arms and flying to the moon.

"Get out," Jack spat the words like a fire-breathing dragon, as though they were two completely different sentences. Fury shook him from head to toe, and if he'd had any medical issues, Blair would have worried he was on the verge of suffering a heart attack or stroke.

"Take that kid and leave the city. Now before I call and have my lawyers and start a custody case. I will have that little girl taken from you so quickly you will wish you had never opened your legs in the first place."

Blair gapped, wide eyed in shook.

"Get out now," he repeated, turning to point one long finger toward the door.

Not that Blair had to be told twice. She had anticipated this from the minute Chuck had mentioned coming back to the city. "Gladly," she said, bending at the waist to gather Charlotte's blanket and toys one-handedly.

With her shoulders back and head held high, she strode past Jack and into the bedroom to pack her things.


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

Chuck's limo pulled up in front of The Empire. He'd forgotten some files on the desk in his suite, and was hoping he had time to grab them and get back to the office, deal with the rest of the issues filling his long to do list and get home again in time for dinner.

Normally, he would simply skip dinner with the family and remain at the office as long as it took to get the job done. But for some reason, his workaholic temperament seemed to have abandoned him. He barely wanted to spend the rest of the day at the office, let alone his evening , as well. Instead, he wanted to be here, at home, with Blair and Charlotte.

His mouth curved in a smile just thinking about them, and he glanced at his watch, debating how much time he could afford to spend with them before turning around and heading back to the office.

There was a taxi parked ahead of the limo and he lifted a hand to the cabbie as he rounded a luggage cart. Bounding through the lobby he rushed into the elevator. Stepping off he came to a screeching halt at the pile of luggage and baby items in stacked by the door.

"What the hell is going on?" he muttered more to himself than anyone else.

Hearing a noise from the bedroom, he lifted his head to find Blair with Charlotte in her arms, two of the staff trailing behind, arms loaded with even more of his ex-wife's and daughter's belongings.

"Thank you so much for all your help," Blair was saying, "I really appreciate it."

"What's going on?" He asked, more loudly, this time.

Blair's head jerked up at his shape tone or his sudden unexpected appearance, or both.

"Chuck," she breathed. "I wasn't expecting you to be back so soon."

"Obviously."

His brows drew in an angry, suspicious frown as she stopped just outside the room. The two maids dipped their heads and mumbled about taking her things downstairs, then disappeared as quickly as they could.

"Sneaking off again?" he accused, not caring that his voice was cold with disappointment and betrayal.

She was leaving him again, was all he could think. He'd asked her to spend just a few days - a week at the most - and she hand't made it even two days.

They'd made love last night, more then once. Slept wrapped in each others arms. He'd thought - stupidly, it turned out - that they had turned a corner and might actually be able to make their relationship work.

But while he'd been falling in love with her all over again and thinking about reconciliation, she'd been planing a timely escape. Exactly the same as before.

Exactly. Because the last time she'd left him, she'd been pregnant with his child...and there was a good chance the same was true now.

"No," Blair said, nervously licking her lips. "I mean, yes, I'm leaving, but no, I'm not trying to sneak off. I left you a note...on the back of the one you left me this morning."

Well, that was different, at least, he thought with a heavy dose of sarcasm.

"And a note makes up for taking off in the middle of the day while I'm at the office?" he shot back. "With my daughter?"

"Of course not," she returned, looking strangely not guilty. "Although when you read the note, you'll see that I explained I'm not really taking off. I'm simply leaving the hotel for my mothers penthouse. I was going to stay there until I had a chance to talk to you."

He cocked his head, wondering what she could be up to. But then curiosity won out and he heard himself ask, "About what?"

She swallowed hard, her eyes going dark and oddly blank. "You uncle told me to leave."

His own eyes went wide in surprise. "Why?"

"Fr the same reason he drove me away last time - because he hates me. Or at least disapproves of our relationship. As far as he's concerned, I'm keeping you from business, trapping you into family life." A small smile touched her lips as she added, "of course, this time he was much more forthright about wanting me gone, he threatened a custody suite."

"A custody suite," he murmured, trying to process what he was hearing, but growing more confused by the minute. "Why would he do that?"

"Because I refused to let him push me around any longer. I refuse to let him make me feel inferior. And I will not stand by and watch him try to steal this company from you."

Chuck shook his head and started forward. "This is just a misunderstanding. Uncle Jack can be harsh, I know, but he's thrilled about Charlotte and I'm sure he didn't meant the way it sounded ."

He reached out to grasp her shoulders, but she took a quick, single step back.

"No. It's not a misunderstanding, Chuck." she told him, her tone implacable. "I know you look up to him and I know he is you only family. I would never intentional try to drive a wedge between you and him. But as much as I love you, I can't be here anymore."

Chuck's chest tightened at her words. She loved him...or claimed to, at any rate yet she was preparing to walk away and leave him. Again.

"You love me," he scoffed, tossing the deceleration back in her face. "Right. You love me, but you're leaving. Again. Nd what about Charlotte? What about the child you might be carrying now? My child. Are you going to run off and hide another pregnancy from me? Keep another baby from its father?"

She blanched at that, and God help him, he was glad. He knew he was being cruel, saying things to intentionally hurt her. But damn it, he was hurting, too. He was being betrayed a second time by the only woman he'd ever loved and who'd claimed - more than once - to love him in return.

"That's not fair Chuck," she said in a small voice, tightening her grip on Charlotte.

"The truth hurts, doesn't it, Blair? Signed divorce papers or not, you knew you were pregnant when you left town last time and you didn't even bother to tell me."

Because Charlotte was starting to fuss at her hip, she lowered her voice, but her temper came through loud and clear.

"Don't you dare lay that entirely at my feet. I kept Charlotte a secret, yes buy only after you refused to speak to me. I tried to tell you I was pregnant, but you couldn't be bothered to listen."

Chuck's gaze narrowed. What game was she playing at now? He wondered. If what she said was true, it was news to him - and he sincerely believed he would remember his ex-wife telling him she was carrying his child.

"What are you talking about?" he asked carefully.

"I called you. As soon as I realised I was pregnant, I called you at the office, but you said - and I quote, because I will never forget the words as long as I live - there's nothing you could possibly have to say to me that I want to hear. End quote."

Well now he knew something fishy was going on. Because he'd never uttered those words, not where Blair was concerned.

"I never said that," he murmured quietly.

"Yes," Blair retorted with conviction, "you did. Or at least that the message Frank said he was ordered to give me on you behalf."

"Frank," it was a statement, not a question.

"Yes."

For a second, Chuck wasn't certain if the thin sheen of crimson falling over his eyes was imaginary or if he was literally seeing red. He did know, however, that his blood pressure was rising like a geyser about to erupt and his hands were fisting with the urge to punch something. Or someone.

Reaching into his jacket pocket, he pulled out his cell phone and punched the button for his assistant's line at Bass Industries. Frank Green picked up on the first ring.

"Yes, sir," the overeager young man answered, well aware of who was calling thanks to caller I.D.

"I'm out at The Empire. I want you here in under fifteen minutes."

"Yes, sir," Frank responded dutifully and Chuck could almost see him jumping up and rounding his desk before he'd even returned the phone to its cradle.

Meeting Blair's wary gaze, he snapped his own phone closed. "He'll be here soon and then well get to the bottom of this mess once and for all."


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

The seconds dragged on like hours, the minutes like years. Blair stood at the bar while the stony silence in the room grew heavier and more suffocating.

Charlotte wasn't getting any lighter, either. Shifting her to the other hip, she started to lower herself into a sitting position on the carpeted floor, but Chuck moved forward to stop her.

"Let me take her," he said brusquely, holding out his arms.

For a moment, she hesitated, the panicked thought that if she let Chuck take the baby, she might never get her back racing through her mind. But if she tried to hold long to him now, then her vowels that she wouldn't keep Chuck from seeing their daughter would be a lie, wouldn't they?

Hoping Chuck hand't noticed her uncertainty, she handed Charlotte over, rolling her shoulders and stretching her arms to work out the kinks.

"She's getting big, isn't she?" Chuck said, a small smile curving her lips. The first he'd offered since spotting her luggage in the middle of the room.

"Yes, she is."

She was about to suggest they move to the sofa to await Frank's arrival, but just then the door swung upon.

Frank Green was tall, thin and more gangly than athletic. He stood just inside the foyer, brown hair mussed, shoulders sloped and breathing hard, as though he'd run across town from Bass Industries instead of getting a cab.

Before he could say anything, Chuck handed Charlotte back to her and turned on his assistant, any sign of kindness or amusement wiped from his face. Watching him close in on the younger man, even Blair had the urge to shy away and cover the baby's face to protect her from the steam that was almost literally pouring from her fathers ears.

Raising a hand practically in Frank's face, Chuck said in a low voice, "I'm going to ask you some questions and I want honest answers. God help you if you lie to me, do you understand?"

Any hint of eager anticipation in Frank's face, along with every bit of his skis natural color. No doubt he'd thought he was being summoned to run some extra special errand to to receive a much deserved - in his mind, at least - promotion.

"Y-yes, sir," he stammered, struggling to regain his composure.

"Did Blair call the office last year, just after we were divorced, and ask to speak with me?"

Frank's eyes darted past Chuck's shoulder to where she was standing, rocking slightly with the baby, who was currently content with attempting to fit her entire fist into her wide open mouth.

"Yes or no, Frank?" Chuck demanded sharply.

"Yes, sir," he said, returning his attention to his very unhappy employer. "I believe she might have."

"And did you or did you not tell her that there was nothing she had to say to me that I wished to hear?"

At that, Frank Green's eyes went as wide as golf balls and his jaw dropped like a boulder. "I...I..."

He closed his mouth, licked his lips nervously. Then he seemed to deflate, his shoulders sinking even lower beneath his black shirt and beige sweater-vest than before.

"Yes, sir," he replied obediently, "I did."

Even from her vantage point, she saw Chuck's brow dart upward in astonishment. Until that moment, she knew he hadn't believed her. He'd thought she was lying, or at least had suspected she was reinventing history to suit her purposes.

"Why?" he asked, shock and confusion evident in his tone.

"I...I..." Frank's mouth open and closed like a guppy's and the color returned to his face in two rosy spots of nervous embarrassment.

"Because I told him to."

Jack's voice, deep and stern and coming out of nowhere, made Blair jump. Charlotte jerked in her arms at the sudden movement and began to fuss. She bounced up and down and pressed a kiss to the top of her head to shush her, but the greater part of her attention was on Jack and the bomb he had just dropped into the middle of the tense situation.

"Uncle Jack," Chuck murmured, turning in his direction. "What are you talking about?"

Jack steeped from the doorway, dress shoes clunking on the thick parquet tiles.

"After your separation, I instructed Mr Green to field any calls that came into the office from Ms Waldorf and to inform her that you didn't wish to speak to her again, for any reason."

Chuck swung his disbelieving gaze from his Uncle to Frank and back again. Blair's own heart was pounding in her chest, emotion clogging her throat until it threatened to cut off her supply of oxygen.

All this time, she'd been so angry at Chuck. S hurt that he could cut her off the way he had, that he could be so cruel and uncaring with a woman he'd once claimed to love...and who was unexpectedly carrying his child.

She knew, too, that Chuck had probably been equally as angry and hurt at what he perceived to be her actions after the spilt, if he'd been expecting her to stay in a least moderate contact, only to have all her calls impeded by his assistant.

Now she realised that had both been deceived.

"But...why?" Chuck asked

Jack's lips thinned. "It wasn't bad enough you were stupid enough to married her in the first place. Having her hang around and continue to contact her after you finally wished up enough to divorce her would have been beyond unacceptable. As though I would ever stand by and allow her to work her wiles and trick you into taking her back."

"So you ordered my assistant to block my wife's attempts to contact me." It was a statement, not a question.

Jack had known Chuck all his life, while Blair had known him only since school. Yet his Uncle seemed ignorant of the resentment building in the heart of his eyes and clenching of his fists at his sides.

"Of course," Jack responded haughtily, tipping his nose another few centre meters into the air. "I would do anything to protect you and your position at Bass Industries from her."

"Her name." Chuck intoned from between gritted teeth, "is Blair."

Before his uncle could respond to that bit of information, he crossed to Blair and plucked Charlotte right out of her arms. While she floundered, unsure of what to think or do, he grabbed her elbow, ran his hand the rest of the way down her arm and threaded his fingers with hers. He marched them past the pile of her packed belongings nearly to the door, stopping a mere foot from Frank's term relying form.

"You're fired," he told the young man in a sharp tone. "Return to the office, clear out your desk and leave. You're welcome to work for my uncle, if he'll have you, since the two of you deserve each other, cause I'm sure her knows he's fired too. I don't want to see either of you anywhere near Bass Industries ever agin. Is that understood?"

Blair could have sworn she saw tears fill Frank's eyes just before he ducked his head to stare at the tops of his shoes.

"Yes, sir" he said in a watery voice.

"And you," Chuck continued, turning this time to glare at his uncle. "You will never be apart of my business or family again. Blair was right all along, all you ever wanted from me was the money and job title. You thought if I screwed up enough the board would vote me out and instead you."

Chuck paused for a moment, but Blair didn't think it was to allow Jack to respond. The company is mine. You're off the board as of now and your name will be removed from anything related to the corporation."

Jack's nostrils flared as he sucked in a breath, and Blair saw the first shadow of fear cross his severe features.

"You can't do that," he rasped.

Chuck's gaze narrowed, his expression every bit as unyielding as his uncles at that moment. "Watch me."

With that he yanked open the door and stalked out, tugging Blair along with him. The two servants who had been helping her carry her things to the waiting taxi were standing beside the yellow car, doing their best to remain inconspicuous and out of what she was sure they assumed would be the line if fire.

"Put all of Blair's things into my car," he told them, transferring Charlotte back to her. The poor baby was probably beginning to feel like a racquetball, through from her happy gurgles, she seemed to think it was some sort of game.

Then Chuck crossed to the cab and leaned in the open widow to speak in low tones to the man behind the wheel. After Chuck slipped him a few folded bills, the driver nodded, and Chuck returned to her side.

"What are we doing?" she asked, still unable to believe all that had just happened.

Lifting a hand to cup her face, he said, "We're leaving. We'll stay at your mothers, or at The Palace until I can get things straightened out at the office, then we'll head back to Bridgehampton."

"But..."

"No buts." He shook his head, his gaze immediately softening to her lovely eyes. "I'm so sorry, Blair. I didn't see it. I didn't believe you because I didn't want to admit that my Uncle could do that, that he would treat my wife with anything but love and respect."

His thumb rubbed slowly back and forth across her cheek, and she felt herself melting.

"If I had known, if I had truly understood what you were going through, I would have stopped it. I never would have let things between us turn out the way they did."

Her throat was so tight, she couldn't speak, but she believed him. After what he'd just done, how he'd stood up to his Uncle and walked away from his family for her, how could she not?

"I love you, Blair. I've always loved you and I'm so sorry for all the time I've wasted being a blind, stupid fool. I don't need Jack, he's not my family. You're my family, Charlotte is my family. Lilly, Serena, Eric and God help me the Humphrey's. That's all the family I need."

She sniffed as happy tears filled her eyes and balanced precociously on the tips of her lashes.

He leaned in, pressing his brow to hers, and said barely above a whisper. "If I could go back and do things differently, I would never let you go."

A near sob rolled up from her chest, causing those tears to spill over and roll down her cheeks.

"I love you, too," she told him. "And I never wanted to leave, I just couldn't live that way anymore."

"I know that," he said with more understanding than she'd heard from him in longer than she could remember.

"And I didn't plan to keep Charlotte a secret from you. I really did try to tell you, but after Frank refused to let me speak to you, I was so angry and hurt, thinking the directive came from you..." She trailed off, barely certain anymore of how she felt or what had led her to make the decision she had.

"I know," Chuck murmured, one corner of his mouth lifting in a kind, loving half smile. He looked at their daughter with a father's love and pride burning in his eyes before brushing a hand over the baby's downy-soft head.

"We both made mistakes and let small issues become big ones. But we won't let that happen again, will we?"

She shook her head, doing her best to blink back fresh tears.

Framing her face with his big,strong hands, he brushed his lips lightly lightly across hers. "I really do love you, Blair. Forever."

"I love you, too," she tried to say, but his mouth was already covering hers, kissing her deeply, with all the passion that had bloomed between them since that first moment in the back of his limo.


	18. Epilogue

Epilogue

One year later...

Chuck strolled the sidewalk whistling. He never used to whistle, but lately, he'd caught himself doing it more and more often.

Which just went to prove life wasn't quite as dull or depressing as he'd once believed. In fact, he was kind of loving life.

Of course, he knew his current happiness had a lot to do with how he was living...and with whom.

Lifting Charlotte higher on his hip, he continued to whistle - the theme from Dora the Explorer, no less - and grinned at his daughter's sweet giggle. She was wearing a pink sundress designed by her mother and aunt and little silver flats.

The children's line had been Chuck's idea and had been an immediate success. In addition to the the Hampton store there where now six store spread through North America, including the new children's boutique in Manhattan.

The shoes were because Charlotte was walking now...well toddling, was more like it...and because she was staring to want to dress more like her mommy. Chuck's heart gave a lurch at the thought and he squeezed his daughter tighter against his side.

"We're going to see mommy," he told the little girl, then added, "Maybe she will give you a cookie."

"Cookie!" Charlotte yelled at the top of her lungs, lifting her arms and clapping.

Chuck laughed, wondering how much trouble he would get in when Blair found out he was plying their daughter with the promises of sugar first thing in the morning. But then, she really shouldn't be surprised, Charlotte's first word had been 'cookie'...followed by 'mama,' and 'dada'.

Reaching the wide glass storefront, he pulled open the door to the children's boutique. Blair was behind the counter, but as soon as she saw them, she smiled and started around. Her dark curls - longer now the when Charlotte had been an infant - were pulled back in a loose ponytail, and she was wearing a pristine white baby doll dress.

"Cookie!" Charlotte cried, wiggling to be put down.

Blair arched a brow. "Her idea, I'm sure," she murmured half under her breath.

"Of course," Chuck replied

Leaning in, she kissed Charlotte on the cheek, running her fingers through her dark curls. Then she lifted up on tiptoe to kiss him, too, he slipped his free arm around her back and pulled her in for something much longer and deeper. Trapped between them, Charlotte giggled when they stayed locked at the lips a bit too long and slapped their cheeks with her small hands.

They pulled apart, and Blair chuckled, her face flushing a becoming shade of pink. Chuck, however, was far from embarrassment; he was busy calculating how many hours were left before she closed up shop and he could convince her to go to bed early.

Too damn many, that was for sure.

He watched her dig inside a plastic cookie jar that she kept by the front register. Coming around the counter again, she handed Charlotte the cookie and Chuck set her on the countertop to eat it, remaining close enough to keep her from toppling off.

On this side of the counter, Blair's four months of pregnancy were much more noticeable. And just like every time he saw that tiny bump. Chuck's chest constricted with love and pride and the overwhelming relief of knowing that - even though they'd cut it damn close - he hadn't let her get away.

As much as they'd suspected it for a while, she hadn't been pregnant when they'd left the city that day. Instead, they'd had some time to settle the business in Bridgehampton and move back to the city. Adjusting to once again being together. Not that there had been a lot of adjustment needed, at least not on his part.

They'd bought a large, brownstone on the upper east side. It had plenty of room for their growing family, and a small terrace for Charlotte and her future siblings to play.

They had also gotten remarried. At the courthouse this time, with minimum fuss and muss. Only there families had been in attendance. He actually thought Jenny might be combing around to forgiving him, maybe even liking him again.

After everything they'd been through, it had been easy to agree that another big wedding wasn't necessary. They just wanted to be together again, undoing the divorce that they both wished had never taken place.

Then they'd discussed having another child. One he would know about and be involved with from the very beginning. He had never been as attracted to Blair as he was now she was carrying their baby.

"Okay, then I'll get our little Cookie Monster cleaned up and then we can get out of here. Hopefully, Serena or Lilly can babysit for a while this afternoon."

"Why?" Blair asked.

His mouth spread in a wolffish grin and he leaned in to brush his lips across hers. "Because I'm in the mood for something sweet."

Cocking her head to the side, she narrowed her eyes, giving him a sultry, seductive look. "We'll I'm nothing if not sweet."

He gave a low growl at her wicked flirtation and nearly told her how lucky she was Charlotte was with them and the store was fronted by floor to ceiling plate glass windows. Otherwise, he would be lifting her onto of the countertops and divesting her of her clothes already.

"What I want may be a special order."

"Lucky for you, we're set up for special orders. You may have to pay extra."

Lips twitching, he said in a low voice. "That shouldn't be a problem. In case you haven't heard, I'm rich."

She smiled softly And reached up to wrap her arms around his neck. "So am I," she whispered.

And neither of them were talking about their bank accounts.

XOXO


End file.
